The Pakistan Stock Exchange staged a powerful rally on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 index jumping 3,994.62 points, or 2.38 per cent, to close at 172,013.48, crossing the 170,000 level for the first time during the session.

The index opened strongly, gaining 1,707.48 points within the first minutes to reach 169,726.34 by 10:04am, touched an intraday high of 172,286.99, and closed near that peak after trading as low as 168,355.26. It had closed the previous session at 168,018.87, after a 1,454.80-point gain on Tuesday. Total traded volume on the ready market reached 841.6 million shares, up from 517.3 million a day earlier, with traded value of about Rs35.3 billion.

Market watchers linked the buying to hopes of easing tensions in the Middle East and to the changed political picture in Washington after the US midterm elections, alongside softer international oil prices. Topline Securities noted that the rally extended the market’s bullish run to a third consecutive session, with renewed institutional participation. Arif Habib Limited’s head of research, Sana Tawfik, pointed to institutional and fund buying, the midterm outcome, reports of a draft proposal between the US and Iran, and oil holding near $103 a barrel.

The gains were broad-based, spanning banking, cement, automobiles, fertilisers, oil and gas and pharmaceuticals. Among volume leaders, TPL Properties traded 67.85 million shares, followed by Bank of Punjab with 58.20 million and K-Electric with 57.36 million. Analysts cautioned, however, that the rally was driven largely by expectations about talks and political outcomes that were still unresolved when trading ended, so the next session will test whether the momentum holds.

Sources:

Dawn, ‘Equities soar past 172,000 mark on peace hopes’, 5 November 2026 — https://www.dawn.com/news/2042195/equities-soar-past-172000-mark-on-peace-hopes

The Express Tribune, ‘PSX soars nearly 4,000 points in euphoric rally’, 4 November 2026 — https://tribune.com.pk/story/2638608/kse-100-surges-over-2500-points-to-cross-170000-mark?amp=1

Business Recorder, ‘PSX: KSE-100 accumulates nearly 4,000 points as investors bet on US midterms, Iran talks’, 4 November 2026 — https://www.brecorder.com/news/40447354/psx-kse-100-accumulates-nearly-4000-points-as-investors-bet-on-us-midterms-iran-talks