PSX records second-largest single-day surge on IMF optimism, US support

The equity market surged on Tuesday, recording its second-largest single-day rise in history as investors returned to aggressive buying. The rally was fueled by renewed optimism over improving Pakistan–US ties, reduced border tensions, and expectations of positive outcomes from ongoing IMF and World Bank review talks.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) benchmark KSE-100 Index closed at 165,476.02 points, marking an impressive jump of 7,032.60 points, or 4.44%, compared to the previous day’s close of 158,443.42.

During intraday trading, the index soared to a peak of 165,866.77, reflecting a gain of 7,423.35 points (4.69%), before partially retreating from the session’s low of 160,821.72, still up by 2,378.30 points (1.5%).

Stocks showed robust recovery in the early session as investors weighed upbeat Pak-US relations and de-escalation in cross-border tension with Afghanistan,” said Ahsan Mehanti, Managing Director and CEO of Arif Habib Commodities.

“Renewed hopes for positive Pakistan, IMF, and World Bank review talks for release of the IMF tranche next month played a catalyst role in record bullish activity at PSX,” he added.

Investor sentiment improved after Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb’s meetings in Washington with senior US and multilateral officials, signalling renewed economic engagement. Aurangzeb invited US firms to invest in oil, gas, minerals, agriculture, and IT sectors, while lauding the recently agreed US tariff framework to boost bilateral trade.

Finance Minister Aurangzeb Embarks on Key U.S. Visit for IMF-World Bank Meetings

The finance minister met Robert Kaproth, US Assistant Treasury Secretary for International Finance, and Jonathan Greenstein, Counsellor to the Secretary, during the annual IMF–WB meetings. He also held discussions with Riccardo Puliti, International Finance Corporation (IFC) Regional Vice President, on accelerating private-sector investment under the 10-year Country Partnership Framework (CPF) and expediting financial closure of the IFC-backed Reko Diq project.

Aurangzeb will represent Pakistan in IMF and WB plenary sessions, where he is scheduled to meet IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and WB President Ajay Banga, and deliver a keynote address at the G24 and Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (MENAP) forums. He will also attend a WB roundtable on the digital transformation of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR).

The market’s rally came after a bruising session on Monday, when the KSE-100 Index had witnessed a dramatic sell-off, plummeting to an intraday low of 157,678 points before partially recovering to close at 158,443 points, marking a steep loss of 4,654 points, or 2.85%.