The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) staged a sound recovery on Wednesday as renewed buying towards the close lifted the benchmark index firmly into positive territory, reversing the previous session’s trend after volatile trading amid domestic political uncertainty and rising international oil prices.

The KSE-100 index gained 641.07 points, or 0.39%, to settle at 165,417.51. It touched an intraday high of 165,629.35 and a low of 164,060.34.

Earlier, the market had opened on a cautious note, with the index rising to 165,032.13, gaining 255.69 points, or 0.16%, by 9:33am. However, fluctuations soon pushed the benchmark into negative territory, with the index slipping to 164,770.12 at 12:38pm, down 6.32 points from the previous close.

Sentiment remained subdued amid political uncertainty following the reported imposition of governor’s rule and an emergency in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P).

Selling pressure was visible across automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, power generation, refineries and oil marketing companies.

However, renewed buying in index-heavy stocks, particularly across banking, oil and gas, and power sectors, supported the benchmark’s recovery and helped it close firmly in positive territory.

Internationally, oil prices climbed on Wednesday after two vessels were struck in the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian officials announced new tactics to target ships, as Tehran seeks to keep oil prices high and influence the US midterm elections.

Brent crude futures rose 34 cents, or 0.3%, to $106.03 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 28 cents, or 0.3%, to $94.42 a barrel. Both contracts had climbed by more than $1 in early trade.

KTrade Secuities wrote in its market wrap that the KSE-100 index gained 641 points (+0.4%) to close at 165,418, as oil prices remained stable near $106/barrel and the absence of fresh negative news improved investor sentiment. Despite early gains and subsequent profit-taking, renewed buying towards the close helped the market recover and finish firmly in the green, reversing yesterday's trend.

Sectoral support came from commercial banks, investment banks, cement, fertiliser and refinery stocks, with Engro Holdings, Lucky Cement, Fauji Fertiliser, Bank AL Habib and NBP among the key contributors. Meanwhile, Cnergyico, K-Electric, Bank of Punjab and TRG Pakistan led individual stock volumes, with total turnover remaining subdued at around 150 million shares.
Despite the positive close, low volumes reflect continued caution amid elevated oil prices, geopolitical uncertainty and currency concerns. Sustained buying and improving turnover remain crucial for the market to maintain its upward momentum, KTrade added.

Overall, trading volume jumped to 585.8 million shares against Tuesday’s total of 383.7 million. The value of trade shares stood at Rs20 billion. Shares of 501 companies were traded in the ready market. Of these 256 rose, 200 fell and 45 remained unchanged. WorldCall Telecom was the volume leader with trading in 87.4 million shares, staying static at Rs0.96.