The Pakistan Stock Exchange extended its bull-run on Thursday and the KSE-100 index rose 137 points as investors drew encouragement from the receipt of $1 billion by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) through the sale of Eurobonds.
However, a rise in Covid-19 cases in the country, particularly in Karachi, capped gains.
Eurobond proceeds of $1 billion also propped up the SBP’s foreign currency reserves to a four-and-a-half-year high.
Separately, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority’s recommendation to jack up petrol price by Rs11.5 per litre for the next fortnight fuelled buying in stocks of oil sectors.
Earlier, trading kicked off on an optimistic note and the index climbed steadily for most part of the day. The market came under selling pressure in final hours, which wiped off some of the gains.
At close, the benchmark KSE-100 index recorded an increase of 136.79 points, or 0.29%, to settle at 47,628.26.
