Equities gain 398 points on refinery optimism

Dawn reported that the Pakistan Stock Exchange closed higher on Monday, with the benchmark settling at 180,502.44 after a gain of 397.83 points, or 0.22 per cent. Buyers stepped in at levels they saw as attractive, despite stalled US-Iran talks on the Strait of Hormuz and fresh sharp comments from Donald Trump. The index touched an intraday high of 181,158.87 before profit-taking set in, but it still closed in the green.

Refinery stocks drew the most attention after market rumours of a possible signing for the long-awaited refinery policy, which prompted heavy purchases across the sector. Attock Refinery, Pakistan Refinery, National Refinery and Cnergyico PK all ended higher, beating the wider market. Ali Najib of Arif Habib Ltd linked the optimism to five domestic refineries planning $4.5bn to $5bn of investment in cleaner fuels, residue upgrading and capacity growth.

Service Long March Tyres reported FY26 earnings of Rs1.83 a share, up 30 per cent year on year from Rs1.40, and declared a Rs0.83 per-share cash dividend. PSO, PPL, ATRL, CNERGY and OGDC together added 723 points, while Habib Bank, Fauji Fertiliser, Systems Ltd, Lucky Cement and Habib Metropolitan Bank took off 403 points. Traded volume rose 17.54 per cent to 1.04bn shares, while turnover jumped 31.71 per cent to Rs48.2bn.