Pakistan stock market crosses 120,000-mark amid cautious trading ahead of budget
The KSE-100 index surged by 636 points, or 0.53 percent, to reach at 120,285 points during the intra-day trading at around 10am on Monday.
The market recorded a historic comeback last week following the Pakistan-India ceasefire brokered by US President Donald Trump which proved to be a relief for investors.
But analysts attributed Monday's slightly "slower" activity to cautious investors ahead of the upcoming budget in June.
"The KSE100 has started the week on a muted note, which is reflecting in slower trading activity," Raza Jafri, head of Intermarket Securities, told Arab News.
"It is possible that investors are waiting for the FY26 Budget, expected in early June, before they become more active."
Pakistan is set to unveil its federal budget for the fiscal year 2025–26 on June 2, being formulated under stringent conditions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked this month after New Delhi launched missile strikes on multiple locations in Pakistan, blaming Islamabad for a deadly Apr. 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 tourists. Pakistan has denied involvement.
The crisis triggered a 12 percent decline at the Pakistani stock market from Apr. 23 till May 8.
However, the market recovered nearly all of its losses last week, climbing more than 3,500 points.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
13 minutes ago
- Al Arabiya
US, China to resume talks on tariff truce extension ahead of Trump-Xi meeting
Top US and Chinese economic officials will resume talks in Stockholm on Monday to try to tackle longstanding economic disputes at the center of a trade war between the world's top two economies, aiming to extend a truce by three months and keeping sharply higher tariffs at bay. China is facing an August 12 deadline to reach a durable tariff agreement with President Donald Trump's administration, after Beijing and Washington reached preliminary deals in May and June to end weeks of escalating tit-for-tat tariffs and a cut-off of rare earth minerals. Without an agreement, global supply chains could face renewed turmoil from US duties snapping back to triple-digit levels that would amount to a bilateral trade embargo. The Stockholm talks come hot on the heels of Trump's biggest trade deal yet with the European Union on Sunday for a 15 percent tariff on most EU goods exports to the US, including autos. The bloc will also buy $750 billion worth of American energy and make $600 billion worth of US investments in coming years. No similar breakthrough is expected in the US-China talks but trade analysts said that another 90-day extension of a tariff and export control truce struck in mid-May was likely. An extension of that length would prevent further escalation and facilitate planning for a potential meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in late October or early November. A US Treasury spokesperson declined comment on a South China Morning Post report quoting unnamed sources as saying the two sides would refrain from introducing new tariffs or other steps that could escalate the trade war for another 90 days. Trump's administration is poised to impose new sectoral tariffs that will impact China within weeks, including on semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, ship-to-shore cranes and other products. 'We're very close to a deal with China. We really sort of made a deal with China, but we'll see how that goes,' Trump told reporters on Sunday before European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen struck their tariff deal. The Financial Times reported on Monday that the US had paused curbs on tech exports to China to avoid disrupting trade talks with Beijing and support Trump's efforts to secure a meeting with Xi this year. The industry and security bureau of the Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, had been told to avoid tough moves on China, the newspaper said, citing current and former officials. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. The White House and the department did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment outside business hours. Deeper issues Previous US-China trade talks in Geneva and London in May and June focused on bringing US and Chinese retaliatory tariffs down from triple-digit levels and restoring the flow of rare earth minerals halted by China and Nvidia's H20 AI chips and other goods halted by the United States. So far, the talks have not delved into broader economic issues. They include US complaints that China's state-led, export-driven model is flooding world markets with cheap goods, and Beijing's complaints that US national security export controls on tech goods seek to stunt Chinese growth. 'Geneva and London were really just about trying to get the relationship back on track so that they could, at some point, actually negotiate about the issues which animate the disagreement between the countries in the first place,' said Scott Kennedy, a China economics expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. 'I'd be surprised if there is an early harvest on some of these things but an extension of the ceasefire for another 90 days seems to be the most likely outcome,' Kennedy said. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has already flagged a deadline extension and has said he wants China to rebalance its economy away from exports to more domestic consumption -- a decades-long goal for US policymakers. Analysts say the US-China negotiations are far more complex than those with other Asian countries and will require more time. China's grip on the global market for rare earth minerals and magnets, used in everything from military hardware to car windshield wiper motors, has proved to be an effective leverage point on US industries. Trump-Xi meeting? In the background of the talks is speculation about a possible meeting between Trump and Xi in late October. Trump has said he will decide soon on a landmark trip to China, and a new flare-up of tariffs and export controls would likely derail planning. Sun Chenghao, a fellow at Tsinghua University's Center for International Security and Strategy in Beijing, said that a Trump-Xi summit would be an opportunity for the US to lower the 20 percent tariffs on Chinese goods related to fentanyl. In exchange, he said the Chinese side could make good on its 2020 pledge to increase purchases of US farm products and other goods. 'The future prospect of the heads of state summit is very beneficial to the negotiations because everyone wants to reach an agreement or pave the way in advance,' Sun said. Still, China will likely request a reduction of multi-layered US tariffs totaling 55 percent on most goods and further easing of US high-tech export controls, analysts said. Beijing has argued that such purchases would help reduce the US trade deficit with China, which reached $295.5 billion in 2024.
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
Europe hopes for ‘no surprises' as US weighs troop withdrawals
After keeping Donald Trump happy with a pledge to up defense spending at NATO's summit, Europe is now bracing for a key decision from the US president on the future of American forces on the continent. Washington is currently conducting a review of its military deployments worldwide -- set to be unveiled in coming months -- and the expectation is it will lead to drawdowns in Europe. That prospect is fraying the nerves of US allies, especially as fears swirl that Russia could look to attack a NATO country within the next few years if the war in Ukraine dies down. However, the alliance is basking in Trump's newfound goodwill following its June summit in The Hague, and his officials are making encouraging noises that Europe will not be left in the lurch. 'We've agreed to no surprises and no gaps in the strategic framework of Europe,' said Matthew Whitaker, US ambassador to NATO, adding he expected the review to come out in 'late summer, early fall'. 'I have daily conversations with our allies about the process,' he said. While successive US governments have mulled scaling back in Europe to focus more on China, Trump has insisted more forcefully than his predecessors that the continent should handle its own defense. 'There's every reason to expect a withdrawal from Europe,' said Marta Mucznik from the International Crisis Group. 'The question is not whether it's going to happen, but how fast.' When Trump returned to office in January many felt he was about to blow a hole in the seven-decade-old alliance. But the vibe in NATO circles is now far more upbeat than those desperate days. 'There's a sanguine mood, a lot of guesswork, but the early signals are quite positive,' one senior European diplomat told AFP, talking as others on condition of anonymity. 'Certainly no panic or doom and gloom.' 'Inevitable' The Pentagon says there are nearly 85,000 US military personnel in Europe -- a number that has fluctuated between 75,000 and 105,000 since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. 'I think it is inevitable that they pull out some of their forces,' a second European diplomat told AFP. 'But I don't expect this to be like a dramatic overhaul. I think it's going to be gradual. I think it's going to be based on consultations.' Trump's first target is likely to be the troops left over from a surge ordered by his predecessor Joe Biden after Moscow's tanks rolled into Ukraine. Officials say relocating the rump of that 20,000-strong deployment would not hurt NATO's deterrence too much -- but alarm bells would ring if Trump looked to cut too deep into personnel numbers or close key bases. The issue is not just troop numbers -- the US has capabilities such as air defenses, long-range missiles and satellite surveillance that allies would struggle to replace in the short-term. 'The kinds of defense investments by Europe that are being made coming out of The Hague summit may only be felt in real capability terms over many years,' said Ian Lesser from the German Marshall Fund think tank. 'So the question of timing really does matter.' 'Inopportune moment' Washington's desire to pull back from Europe may be tempered by Trump now taking a tougher line with Russia -- and Moscow's reluctance to bow to his demands to end the Ukraine war. 'It seems an inopportune moment to send signals of weakness and reductions in the American security presence in Europe,' Lesser said. He also pointed to Trump's struggles during his first term to pull troops out of Germany -- the potential bill for relocating them along with political resistance in Washington scuppering the plan. While European diplomats are feeling more confident than before about the troop review, they admit nothing can be certain with the mercurial US president. Other issues such as Washington's trade negotiations with the EU could rock transatlantic ties in the meantime and upend the good vibes. 'It seems positive for now,' said a third European diplomat. 'But what if we are all wrong and a force decrease will start in 2026. To be honest, there isn't much to go on at this stage.'
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Arab News
Pakistan hopes for ‘meaningful outcomes' ahead of high-level UN summit on Palestine today
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has expressed the hope for achieving 'meaningful outcomes' ahead of a high-level United Nations summit on Palestine scheduled to convene today, Monday, at New York. The event — officially titled the High-Level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution — will be co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and France from July 28-29. The conference arrives amid worsening humanitarian conditions in Gaza and a historic diplomatic shift: France's decision to formally recognize Palestine as a state. Israel's war on Gaza has killed over 57,000 Palestinians since October 7, 2023. The conference takes place a day after Israel declared a 'tactical pause' in fighting in parts of Gaza on Sunday and said it would allow the UN and aid agencies to open secure land routes to tackle a deepening hunger crisis. Dar spoke to Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Sunday to discuss the 'grave' humanitarian situation in Gaza impacting millions of Palestinians, Pakistan's foreign office said on Sunday. 'He expressed the hope of achieving meaningful outcomes from the high-level international conference on Palestine and implementation of the two-state solution scheduled to be held in New York tomorrow,' the foreign office said. The two diplomats also exchanged views about a 'high-level visit' to Pakistan in the near future, the statement said without elaborating further. One of the most consequential developments ahead of the conference is French President Emmanuel Macron's July 24 announcement that France will formally recognize Palestine, with the official declaration to be made at the UN General Assembly in September. Analysts say France's move could tip the balance internationally. Already, 147 of 193 UN member states — nearly 75 percent — recognize Palestine, including nearly all of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. France would be the first G7 country to join that group. The US, Canada, Australia, Germany, and the UK still do not, citing the need for direct negotiations with Israel. The conference will convene foreign ministers and diplomats from dozens of countries and will build upon the work of eight working groups, each focusing on areas such as security, humanitarian aid, and post-war reconstruction. A follow-up summit is planned in September at the UN General Assembly, to be co-chaired by President Macron and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
