Thursday, April 30 2026

Selling continues, KSE-100 down nearly 3,000 points in early trade
Selling pressure persisted at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index shedding nearly 3,000 points during the opening minutes of trading on Thursday. At 9:45am, the benchmark index was hovering at 162,883.34, down by 2,940.53 points or 1.77%. Selling was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs and power generation. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, POL, PPL, MCB, MEBL and UBL, traded in the red. On Wednesday, PSX came under heavy selling pressure as disappointing corporate earnings, weakness in heavyweight stocks and cautious sentiment amid rising oil prices and geopolitical concerns pushed the Index sharply lower. The benchmark KSE-100 Index plunged 2,588.35 points, or 1.54%, to close at 165,823.88 points. Internationally, AI-related shares fared well in Asia on Thursday after a raft of generally positive ‌earnings reports, while surging oil prices left bonds battered as central banks turned more hawkish on inflation and interest rates.
Related news categories: business economic-indicators psx stock-exchanges

Tech shares rise in Asia, bonds scarred by central bank hawks as oil spikes
AI-related shares fared well in Asia on Thursday after a raft of generally positive ‌earnings reports, while surging oil prices left bonds battered as central banks turned more hawkish on inflation and interest rates. Investors feared the European Central Bank and Bank of England would likely warn of higher rates later in the day, after three Federal Reserve members voted to drop its easing bias in the most divided decision since 1992. Outgoing ​Chair Jerome Powell also confirmed he would stay on as a governor for now to defend the institution’s independence as his successor ​Kevin Warsh, hand-picked by President Donald Trump, who wants lower interest rates, moves toward confirmation.
Related news categories: business misc stock-exchanges

JS Bank reports profit after tax of Rs1.045bn in Q1 2026
JS Bank Limited on Wednesday announced its financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, reporting a profit before tax of Rs 2.175 billion and profit after tax of Rs 1.045 billion, translating into earnings per share (EPS) of Rs 0.51. JS Bank’s balance sheet showed moderate growth, with total assets reported at Rs 682.877 billion, reflecting a 4 percent increase over December 2025. The growth in total assets was primarily driven by investments, which increased by Rs 89.076 billion on a net basis from December 2025. The Bank’s deposit base remained stable at Rs 544.898 billion. More importantly, the Bank’s non-remunerative deposit mix continued to remain over 40 percent.
Related news categories: business comm-banks economic-indicators psx stock-exchanges
Related symbols: jsbl (news stock)

Quarter ending Mar 31st: Allied Bank posts Rs16.867bn PBT
Allied Bank’s strategic emphasis on sound risk management, balanced portfolio diversification, and prudent capital allocation is strengthening its resilience. Coupled with a strong focus on digitalization and operational efficiency, this approach is enhancing customer value and sustainable growth. The Bank recorded markup up/interest income of Rs. 83,699 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, compared to Rs. 71,647 million during the same period last year, reflecting an increase of 17 percent. This increase primarily stems on account of higher average volumes of mark-up bearing assets.
Related news categories: business comm-banks economic-indicators psx stock-exchanges
Related symbols: abl (news stock)

Sitara to expand retail network with Rs4.8bn IPO funding
Sitara Petroleum Service Limited plans to expand its retail network to over 100 fuel stations within the next two years, aiming to strengthen its presence along high-growth corridors, with the expansion to be financed through an estimated Rs 4.8 billion to be raised via an Initial Public Offering (IPO). Sitara Petroleum has recently announced its IPO, seeking to raise up to Rs4.8 billion to finance expansion in its fuel retail network, logistics operations and storage infrastructure, according to its IPO prospectus.The company is offering a total of 279.9 million ordinary shares, representing 16.66 percent of its post-IPO paid-up capital. Of these, 168 million shares are being offered to the public, while 111.9 million shares have already been placed through a pre-IPO transaction.
Related news categories: business economic-indicators investment-copr psx stock-exchanges