Bulls continued to maintain their firm grip over the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday as the KSE-100 index roared past 150.5k points, a historic high that came on the back of Moody’s ratings upgrade for banks and encouraging corporate-sector earnings.

Robust interest from local institutions in stock buying and a modest current account deficit for July also lent support to the stock market, which rose 820 points, or 0.55%, and closed the day at 150,591.

“Stocks closed at an all-time high after Moody’s Ratings upgraded the local and foreign-currency long-term deposit ratings of five leading Pakistani banks to Caa1 from Caa2, following its recent decision to raise the country’s sovereign rating,” commented Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Corp.

“Upbeat data showing $284 million in current account deficit amid strong remittances, rising exports and rupee stability powered the market’s record close,” he said.

Topline Securities, in its report, said bulls showed no signs of fatigue at the local bourse, storming ahead to notch the intra-day record high of 1,490 points before settling at 150,591, up 820 points (+0.55%).

The upward momentum was underpinned by better-than-expected corporate earnings and a strong liquidity push from local institutions, lifting the benchmark index to uncharted heights, it said, adding that investor confidence remained buoyant as market heavyweights attracted robust flows, reinforcing the bullish undertone.

The rally was largely fuelled by index heavyweights including Systems Limited, Bank AL Habib, NBP, MCB Bank and Bank Alfalah, which collectively contributed 503 points to the upward trajectory.

Market participation remained robust, with traded volumes surging to 668 million shares and traded value reaching Rs40.7 billion. The Bank of Punjab led the volumes as it saw 52.3 million shares change hands during the trading session, Topline added.