Stocks extended their winning streak on Friday, hovering near an all-time intraday high just below the 95,000 mark, as upbeat developments, including the unlikelihood of an International Monetary Fund (IMF)-dictated mini-budget, fuelled a strong risk-on rally.
During the early intraday trade, the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 Shares Index soared to a record high of 94,982.28 points, reflecting a 790.39-point increase from the previous close of 94,191.89 points.
The market’s upward momentum underscores a growing wave of investor confidence fueled by encouraging economic indicators.
Reacting to the bull run, Ahsan Mehanti, Managing Director & CEO at Arif Habib Commodities, said stocks reached a new all-time high amid receding fears over mini-budget and Islamabad High Court (IHC) relief on banking sector tax levies.
“Falling bank lending rates and rupee stability contributed to the ongoing rally at the capital market,” Mehanti added.
Central bank-held foreign exchange reserves reached a more than two-year high of $11.26 billion as of November 8, while the rupee also rose for the second straight day on Thursday as exporters’ dollar sales and remittances exceeded importers’ demand.
Reports suggest the IMF has raised no concerns about Pakistan meeting its revenue collection targets, easing fears of a mini-budget or new taxation measures. This has bolstered investor sentiment and increased trading activity across sectors.
The mission, led by its mission chief Nathan Porter, is visiting Pakistan to hash out recent developments and the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme performance to date.
After meetings with Pakistani authorities, the IMF staff has reportedly given a thumbs-up to an increase in the tax-to-GDP ratio by nearly 1.5 percentage points — a significant achievement by the Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR).
This improvement means there’s no immediate need for additional tax measures through a supplementary finance bill.
It must be noted that the IMF had previously set a target for Pakistan to boost its tax revenues by 1.5% of GDP in the fiscal year 2024-25, targeting a total increase of 3% throughout the 37-month programme.
Blue chip banking sector stocks remained in the limelight after reports that about a dozen banks in Pakistan have secured a temporary relief from the IHC against a government tax on the lenders if their borrowing to the private sector was lower than the target.
