PSX: stocks surge, KSE-100 up over 1,000 points in early trading

Demand for shares picked up on the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Wednesday, with the KSE-100 gaining more than 1,000 points in the opening minutes, Business Recorder reported. At 9:58am the index hovered at 166,176.01, a gain of 1,024.37 points or 0.62%. Buyers were active across several sectors, and heavyweight counters including ARL, HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, SSGC, SNGPL, HBL, MEBL, NBP and UBL all traded higher.

The early gains came after a weaker Tuesday, when steady selling, cautious sentiment and macroeconomic and geopolitical concerns pushed the index 814.44 points lower, a 0.49% decline, to finish at 165,151.64. Overseas, Asian equities advanced and bonds steadied after Wall Street gained, as early earnings reports suggested strong profits for multinational firms. MSCI's Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan rose 1.5%, with South Korean shares up 4%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 added 1.3%.

Elsewhere, French equities declined as concern persisted over the administration's measures to contain recent unrest, with demonstrations set for Saturday. Traders in emerging markets are watching Indonesia's central bank, which is working to arrest the rupiah's decline after a rout triggered by an MSCI warning about possible exclusion of local stocks from major indices.