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PSX surges to fresh peak on second day of strong gains | The Express Tribune

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PSX surges to fresh peak on second day of strong gains | The Express Tribune


The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Tuesday witnessed strong bullish momentum for a second consecutive day, driving the benchmark index to a new record high.

By mid-day, the benchmark index had surged even further, touching an intraday high of 166,556.29 before settling at 165,774.16. The rally added 1,926 points compared to the previous close of 163,847.68.

Market activity remained vibrant, with trading volume recorded at nearly 390 million shares, valuing transactions at over Rs39.5 billion. The day’s low was 164,208.33. Analysts attributed the gains to strong investor sentiment, fuelled by positive expectations on the economic front and institutional buying.

Trading opened with a gain of 940 points, lifting the KSE-100 Index to 164,787 points during intra-day trading. Momentum remains positive, with the index so far rising by 1,296 points to 165,144 points.

The rally builds on Monday’s session, when the market also posted significant gains and set fresh highs.

Read: Stocks jump to fresh peak over IMF review

Earlier on Monday, Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) opened the week on a highly strong note as the KSE-100 index soared 1,591 points to close at a new record high at 163,848.

Buying interest remained robust, particularly in attractive stocks, pushing the index to the intra-day peak of 163,904, while the day’s low stood at 162,059. There was brisk activity, reflected in high trading volumes of 1.3 billion shares.

Investors drew support from the visit of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission for the second review of its $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and first assessment under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

Arif Habib Limited (AHL), in its commentary, wrote that stocks took a solid start to the week with the KSE-100 index gaining 0.98% day-on-day and reaching the high of 163.9k in intra-day trading.

Some 60 shares rose while 40 fell, where Fauji Fertiliser Company (+3.1%), Pakistan State Oil (+6.16%) and HBL (+2.51%) contributed the most to index gains. On the contrary, Engro Holdings (-0.66%), Lucky Cement (-0.73%) and DG Khan Cement (-2.52%) were the biggest drags, it stated.

Among corporate news, Ghandhara Automobiles (+0.04%) announced FY25 earnings per share (EPS) of Rs71.85, up 11x year-on-year (YoY), and dividend per share of Rs10, which was above expectations.

Additionally, Air Link Communication (+10%) announced FY25 EPS of Rs12.01, +3% YoY, and dividend per share of Rs7, which also beat expectations. AHL estimates the weekly draw will remain at 165k with support rising to 162k.



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Nike shares fall 9% on weak outlook, expected 20% sales decline in China

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Nike shares fall 9% on weak outlook, expected 20% sales decline in China


A Nike logo is displayed at a Nike store in Austin, Texas, Feb. 5, 2026.

Brandon Bell | Getty Images

Shares of Nike fell in extended trading Tuesday after the retailer warned sales will fall for the rest of the calendar year, led by an expected 20% decline in its key China market during the current quarter.

Chief Financial Officer Matt Friend said during the company’s earnings call that Nike expects sales for its current fiscal fourth quarter to drop between 2% and 4%, compared with Wall Street estimates of a 1.9% increase, according to LSEG.

For the duration of the calendar year, Friend said, the company expects sales to fall by a low single-digit percentage, led by growth in North America and offset by declines in China. That outlook wasn’t comparable to estimates.

Nike beat expectations across the business on both the top and bottom lines for its fiscal third quarter, but its guidance left investors with more questions about how long its turnaround will take. Friend also cautioned that Nike’s guidance was based off of where the global economic picture stands today — and it could change given recent geopolitical volatility.

“We also recognize that the environment around us has become increasingly dynamic, and we could experience unplanned volatility due to the disruption in the Middle East, rising oil prices and other factors that could impact either input costs or consumer behavior,” said Friend. “We are focused on what we can control.”

Shares fell more than 8% in extended trading.

Here’s how the world’s largest sneaker company did for its fiscal third quarter, compared with estimates from analysts polled by LSEG:

  • Earnings per share: 35 cents vs. 28 cents expected
  • Revenue: $11.28 billion vs. $11.24 billion expected

The company’s reported net income for the three-month period that ended Feb. 28 was $520 million, or 35 cents per share. That’s a 35% decline from $794 million, or 54 cents per share, a year earlier. That plunge came as Nike’s gross profit margin slid 1.3 percentage points to 40.2%, “primarily due to higher tariffs in North America,” the company said.

Sales were flat at $11.28 billion, compared to $11.27 billion last year.

While Nike beat expectations on the top and bottom lines, it posted a mixed picture regionally. Nike’s largest market of North America continued to show steady growth, as revenue climbed 3% to $5.03 billion, but that was just shy of Wall Street’s expectations of $5.04 billion, according to StreetAccount.

Meanwhile, Nike’s Greater China market continued to shrink, with revenue down 7% to $1.62 billion during the quarter. Still, that total beat analyst estimates of $1.50 billion, according to StreetAccount.

Nike is continuing to work through a colossal turnaround under CEO Elliott Hill. About a year and a half into his tenure, Hill has made strides in repairing parts of the business, but has been clear that it’ll take time for the entire company to improve given the retailer’s scale and complexity. 

He reiterated that expectation on Tuesday, saying in a news release that “the pace of progress is different across the portfolio.”

“The areas we prioritized first continue to drive momentum,” Hill said. “The work is not finished, but the direction is clear, our teams are moving with focus and urgency, and our foundation is getting even stronger to build the future of NIKE.”

Friend said Nike’s turnaround efforts “will continue to impact results over the balance of the calendar year.”

Nike’s recovery was already coming at a tough time as a global trade war dented its efforts to improve profitability and drive sales from inflation-weary shoppers. But now the athletic company will have to contend with a new war in the Middle East that’s already led to rising gas prices and is expected to send consumer prices even higher, which could push shoppers to cut back on nice-to-haves like new clothes and shoes to save money elsewhere. 

“We continue to be encouraged by the momentum in North America. We’ve got a strong order book for summer,” Friend said. “We’re seeing positive signs and sell through. We’re not seeing a consumer reaction to what’s going on in the Middle East at this point in time, in North America.”

Hill has focused in part on revitalizing Nike’s business with wholesale partners as opposed to direct sales on its website and in stores. Wholesale revenue climbed 5% to $6.5 billion.

Meanwhile, direct sales slid 4% to $4.5 billion.

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Tech giant Oracle makes ‘significant’ job cuts

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Tech giant Oracle makes ‘significant’ job cuts



It is thought that thousands of people may have lost their jobs at Oracle, one of the world’s largest tech companies.



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Oil nears highest price since start of Iran war

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Oil nears highest price since start of Iran war



The US-Israel Iran war has halted almost all traffic in a key waterway and the price Brent crude has surged.



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