Market watch: Stocks rise, aided by IT sector package

The Pakistan Stock Exchange staged a rebound on Wednesday as the KSE-100 index climbed 121 points, aided by investor interest in technology stocks. The approval of an incentive package for the IT industry by Prime Minister Imran Khan triggered bullish activity in the technology sector, where stocks were in the limelight throughout the session. Moreover, market participants took cue from the recovery in Asian markets and engaged in fresh buying, which helped the KSE-100 index make a U-shaped recovery. The uptrend was further supported by the announcement of robust financial results by index-heavy companies. Also, expectation of fruitful results from the visit of PM Khan to Russia strengthened investor sentiment. Earlier, trading began on a positive note, however, the index wiped out the gains and entered negative territory towards midday. Late session buying aided the index in making a sharp recovery, which led to positive close of the market. At close, the benchmark KSE-100 index recorded an increase of 120.74 points, or 0.27%, to settle at 45,132.92 points.