KARACHI – The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued its bullish momentum as the benchmark KSE-100 Index rose over 1% during Monday’s trading session.

The KSE-100 experienced a volatile trading day, swinging in both directions. Despite the fluctuations, the bulls managed to push the index to an intraday high of 73,060.

At the close of the session, the KSE-100 ended at 72,764.24, up 862.15 points or 1.2%.

Key sectors such as automobile assemblers, cement, chemicals, commercial banks, and oil and gas exploration companies saw buying across the board. Index-heavy stocks like PSO, SNGPL, PPL, and POL closed in the green.

Investor sentiment was boosted by optimism about a potential deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and falling inflation rates, raising expectations of a reduction in the key policy rate.

In a significant development, an IMF mission is expected to visit Pakistan this month to discuss a new program. The news came ahead of Pakistan’s preparations for its annual budget for the next financial year.

Pakistan recently completed a short-term $3 billion IMF program, which helped avoid a sovereign default. However, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government emphasized the need for a fresh, longer-term program.