Peace talks boost sentiment: PSX opens strong with nearly 2,900 points gain

Positive sentiments were observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) as investors rejoiced after Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to resume peace talks, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 2,500 points during the opening minutes of trading on Friday. At 10:35am, the benchmark index was hovering at 159,623.48, an increase of 2,890.61 points or 1.84%. Buying interest was observed in key sectors including automobile assemblers, cement, commercial banks, oil and gas exploration companies, OMCs, power generation and refinery. Index-heavy stocks, including HUBCO, MARI, OGDC, PPL, POL, PSO, SSGC and SNGPL, traded in the green. Afghanistan and Pakistan agreed to resume peace talks in Istanbul on November 6 and to maintain a ceasefire until then, Turkey’s foreign ministry said late Thursday.