KARACHI – Share prices increased on Monday with the benchmark KSE-100 index gaining 452.03 points to reach 42,246.69 points at 10:38am.
Intermarket Securities’ Head of Equity Raza Jafri attributed the gains to market expectations that the government would clinch a desperately needed staff-level agreement (SLA) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) this week.
Aba Ali Habib Securities’ Head of Research Salman Naqvi also shared the view, saying the primary reason for the KSE-100’s rise was the expectation of the SLA being signed soon.
Last week, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said the government would sign the agreement in a few days.
A finance ministry official said the deal couldn’t be signed on the weekend because of delays in compliance with certain measures from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
An agreement would release $1.1 billion, which is part of a $6.5bn bailout package the IMF approved in 2019, which analysts say is critical if Pakistan is to avoid defaulting on external debt obligations.
The SBP’s foreign exchange reserves, after falling below $3bn, have now reached $4.3bn, following inflows of about $1.5bn over the past one and a half weeks.
Today s currency exchange rates in Pakistan – Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal rates on March 13, 2023
