KARACHI: The stock market on Thursday managed to reverse its downturn on the back of mid-session value-hunting in selective sectors as the announcement of bidding date for the divestment of national flag-carrier boosted investor sentiment, helping the benchmark KSE 100 index to stage a mild recovery.
According to Topline Securities, the investor confidence strengthened after the prime minister announced that the bidding process for the privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will be broadcast live on Dec 23. This development sparked notable investor interest in PIA Holding Company Ltd, which traded with healthy volumes throughout the day.
After a heavy spell of overnight institutional selling, the PSX staged a welcome recovery, noted the brokerage. The benchmark index touched an intraday high of 691 points before closing at 166,283, up 138 points or 0.08pc, reflecting renewed buying interest and improved intraday sentiment.
Meanwhile, Lalpir Power Ltd from the power sector surfaced as one of the session’s most actively traded stocks, with over 108 million shares exchanging hands. The surge aligns with the company’s ongoing share buyback programme that commenced on Nov 28, as disclosed in its exchange notice.
Market sentiment remained broadly positive, supported by strong performance by Services Industries, Pioneer Cement, Pakistan Telecommunication, Engro Holdings and Pakistan Petroleum, which collectively added approximately 298 points to the benchmark.
Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd, PSX extended its consolidation phase as throughout the session the benchmark moved in both directions within a narrow 951-point band.
Service Industries surged to its upper circuit after announcing a board meeting other than financial results scheduled for tomorrow at 10am.
Meanwhile, Fatima Fertiliser notified PSX that its subsidiary, Fatima Petroleum, has partnered with Mari Energies and Turkish Petroleum to cover two offshore blocks.Market activity remained moderate as the trading volume rose 2.48pc to 607.79 million shares. However, the traded value plunged by 29.71pc Rs31bn from the previous session.
Published in Dawn, December 5th, 2025
