Pakistan’s equity rally scaled a new milestone on Monday as the benchmark KSE-100 Index breached the 181,000 mark for the first time in its history during intraday trading, supported by expectations of further monetary easing, an improving external account position, and rising investor optimism amid ongoing reforms and political stability.
According to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) website, the market opened on a positive note and the benchmark index surged to the day’s highest level of 181,790.12 as of 10:50 am, with an increase of 2,755.19 points.
At 11:02 am, the market was trading at 181,562.67, up by 2527.74 or 1.41% from the previous close of 179,034.93 points.
Buying interest was seen across major sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration, oil marketing companies, and power generation. Index-heavy stocks traded firmly in positive territory, contributing to the early surge and reinforcing bullish sentiment that has carried over from last week’s strong close.
Read This: PSX set for further growth, KSE-100 expected to reach 263,800 by end of 2026: report
Market participants attributed the rally to a combination of supportive macroeconomic indicators, including a softer-than-expected inflation reading of 5.6% for December 2025, real GDP growth of 3.7% year-on-year in the first quarter of FY26, strong sectoral performance, and expectations of further monetary easing by the central bank.
Pakistan recorded its strongest first-quarter real GDP growth in four years at 3.7% YoY, exceeding the eight-year average quarterly growth of 3.3%. The expansion was driven primarily by robust industrial output, which rose 9.4%, the highest first-quarter industrial growth in eight years.
During the previous week, the KSE-100 Index gained 6,634 points, up by 3.8% week-on-week, and settled at an all-time high of 179,035 points. The rally was supported by easing inflationary pressures, strong sectoral performance, and rising investor participation.
Topline Securities noted that buying of local mutual funds also played a key role in the market’s advance in 2025, with net purchases amounting to $298 million (Rs84 billion), the highest level since 2016. This buying was mainly driven by a shift from fixed-income instruments to equity funds amid lower interest rates.
AKD Research has forecast that the positive momentum in the KSE-100 Index will extend through 2026, projecting a 53% return for the year and a historic market capitalisation of $100 billion. The brokerage firm expects the benchmark index to reach 263,800 points by December 2026.
Global cues were also largely supportive. Asian equity markets advanced on Monday, while oil prices remained volatile as investors assessed geopolitical developments in Venezuela ahead of a busy week of global economic data releases.
MSCI’s Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan rose 1.2%, while S&P 500 e-mini futures edged up 0.1%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 climbed 2.8%, nearing a record high, after data showed manufacturing activity stabilising in December. Equity markets in South Korea and Taiwan rose more than 2% each to hit fresh record levels.
In contrast, Chinese markets remained subdued. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was marginally higher, weighed down by losses in energy stocks, while Australian shares posted modest gains.