Karachi, April 24, 2026 – The benchmark KSE-100 index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange ended Friday’s session with a strong gain of nearly 1,500 points, recovering from early losses amid heightened geopolitical concerns and late-session optimism.
The market experienced significant volatility throughout the day, initially dipping into negative territory as investor sentiment weakened due to delays in US-Iran peace negotiations. Escalating tensions, including reports of increased pressure from the United States, triggered early selling. However, confidence returned in the latter half of the session following news that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected to visit Islamabad for a fresh round of diplomatic talks.
By the close, the KSE-100 index settled at 170,672.04 points, posting a gain of 1,498.67 points, or 0.89 percent.
KSE-100 Index Snapshot – April 24, 2026
| Market Status | Closed |
| Current Index | 170,672.04 |
| Change | +1,498.67 |
| Percent Change | +0.89% |
| High | 171,641.32 |
| Low | 166,380.71 |
| Volume | 445,222,167 |
| Previous Close | 169,173.37 |
| Value | 29,412,695,457 |
According to analysts at Topline Securities, the index fell as much as 1.65 percent during intraday trading before staging a recovery. Banking and energy stocks led the rebound, with major positive contributions from MEBL, UBL, OGDC, NBP, and BOP, collectively adding 765 points to the index.
On the downside, BAHL, FABL, MCB, HMB, and EFERT weighed on the market, dragging the index by 158 points.
In terms of trading activity, Bank of Punjab (BOP) topped the charts with a traded value of PKR 3.9 billion, followed by NBP, OGDC, DGKC, and ATRL. Overall market participation remained robust, with total traded volume reaching 1.18 billion shares and total value hitting PKR 40 billion.
Market participants are expected to remain cautious in the coming sessions, closely monitoring geopolitical developments and economic signals.