August 03, 2026 (MLN): The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) opened the week on a strong note, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index advancing over 2,700 points in early trading as broad-based buying emerged across key sectors, led by commercial banks, cement, oil & gas exploration, and fertilizer stocks.
The positive momentum came as investors took cues from easing geopolitical tensions after US President Donald Trump called off a planned strike on Iran, reducing immediate concerns over a wider regional conflict.
The development also pushed oil prices lower in Asian trading as investors unwound some of the geopolitical risk premium built into crude prices.
As of 9:40am, the benchmark KSE-100 Index stood at 178,836.99, showing an increase of 2,742.88 points or 1.56%.
The index remained positive, touching an intraday high of 178,985.94 (+2,891.83 points).
The total volume traded in the KSE-100 Index stood at 12.73 million shares.
Of the 100 index companies, 84 were trading higher, 3 lower, 2 remained unchanged, while 11 remained untraded.
Top gainers during the session were DGKC (+4.39%), MLCF (+4.14%), FCCL (+3.27%), AKBL (+3.19%), and SSGC (+2.85%).
In terms of index-point contributions, UBL (+214.43pts), LUCK (+188.20pts), FFC (+163.00pts), ENGROH (+145.60pts), and MEBL (+143.37pts) provided the biggest support to the benchmark.
Sector-wise, the KSE-100 Index was supported by Commercial Banks (+864.13pts), Cement (+449.99pts), Oil & Gas Exploration Companies (+332.21pts), Fertilizer (+238.95pts), and Investment Banks / Investment Companies / Securities Companies (+163.70pts).