Business
PSX notches another record close above 150.5k | The Express Tribune
KARACHI:
Bulls continued to maintain their firm grip over the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday as the KSE-100 index roared past 150.5k points, a historic high that came on the back of Moody’s ratings upgrade for banks and encouraging corporate-sector earnings.
Robust interest from local institutions in stock buying and a modest current account deficit for July also lent support to the stock market, which rose 820 points, or 0.55%, and closed the day at 150,591.
“Stocks closed at an all-time high after Moody’s Ratings upgraded the local and foreign-currency long-term deposit ratings of five leading Pakistani banks to Caa1 from Caa2, following its recent decision to raise the country’s sovereign rating,” commented Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Corp.
“Upbeat data showing $284 million in current account deficit amid strong remittances, rising exports and rupee stability powered the market’s record close,” he said.
Topline Securities, in its report, said bulls showed no signs of fatigue at the local bourse, storming ahead to notch the intra-day record high of 1,490 points before settling at 150,591, up 820 points (+0.55%).
The upward momentum was underpinned by better-than-expected corporate earnings and a strong liquidity push from local institutions, lifting the benchmark index to uncharted heights, it said, adding that investor confidence remained buoyant as market heavyweights attracted robust flows, reinforcing the bullish undertone.
The rally was largely fuelled by index heavyweights including Systems Limited, Bank AL Habib, NBP, MCB Bank and Bank Alfalah, which collectively contributed 503 points to the upward trajectory.
Market participation remained robust, with traded volumes surging to 668 million shares and traded value reaching Rs40.7 billion. The Bank of Punjab led the volumes as it saw 52.3 million shares change hands during the trading session, Topline added.
New Delhi: Indian stock markets are shut today, January 15, after the Maharashtra government declared a public holiday for municipal elections in Mumbai and several other parts of the state. While the move aims to ensure smooth voting, it has sparked a debate in the financial world with Zerodha CEO Nithin Kamath strongly criticising the closure of both the NSE and BSE, calling it a case of “poor planning.”
Kamath Flags Global Impact of Local Market Holiday
In a post on X, Nithin Kamath pointed out that Indian stock exchanges are deeply connected with global markets, yet were closed today due to local municipal elections. Quoting Charlie Munger, he wrote, “Show me the incentive, and I will show you the outcome.” Kamath said the holiday continues because no one who matters has any incentive to oppose a market shutdown, adding that such decisions underline how far India still needs to go to earn the confidence of global investors.
Indian stock exchanges are closed today for Mumbai’s municipal elections.
The fact that our exchanges, which have international linkages, are shut down for a local municipal election shows poor planning and a serious lack of appreciation for second-order effects.
As Munger…
— Nithin Kamath (@Nithin0dha) January 15, 2026
Holiday Added at the Last Minute
The trading holiday on January 15 was not part of the stock exchanges’ original 2026 trading calendar and was added only earlier this week. Both the BSE and NSE later issued separate circulars confirming that trading would remain suspended today due to municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra.
All Key Market Segments Shut, Trading to Resume Tomorrow
Trading remained suspended across equities, equity derivatives, securities lending and borrowing, as well as currency and interest rate derivatives for the day. The commodity derivatives segment was closed during the morning session, but was scheduled to reopen for evening trading. Normal trading on both the NSE and BSE is set to resume on Friday, January 16.
Getty ImagesRegulator Ofwat has opened an investigation into South East Water (SEW) after repeated loss of water supplies across Kent and Sussex.
The investigation will consider whether the company has complied with its licence condition to provide high standards of customer service and support.
Ofwat said it was the first investigation it had launched into customer-focused licence conditions.
SEW said: “The company will always fully co-operate with any investigation by our regulators and provide any information required.”
As of Wednesday night, 10,000 properties continued to have no water supply.
Lynn Parker, Ofwat’s senior director for enforcement, said: “The last six weeks have been miserable for businesses and households across Kent and Sussex with repeated supply problems.
“We know that this has had a huge impact on all parts of daily life and hurt businesses, particularly in the run up to the festive period.
“That is why we need to investigate and to determine whether the company has breached its licence condition.”
The investigation was started after the prime minister said the situation, which affected 30,000 customers at its height, was “clearly totally unacceptable” and asked Ofwat to review the company’s licence.
SEW said some customers might not see supplies return until Friday after issues first began on Saturday in the wake of Storm Goretti and a power cut at a pumping station.
The company said it would be using 26 tankers to pump water directly into its network while working “around the clock” to fix leaks and bursts.
Ofwat already has an open investigation into SEW’s supply resilience to determine whether it has failed to develop and maintain an efficient water supply system.
As of 17:30 GMT on Wednesday, SEW said it had implemented a new recovery plan for Tunbridge Wells that involved keeping local booster pumps switched off for a further 36 hours.
The aim was that customers would wake up to a consistent supply by Friday morning.
SEW said its local drinking water storage tanks had not refilled at the speed required, so it had to extend the “outage” to allow it to recover fully.
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon speaks during an interview at the Economic Club of Washington in Washington, D.C., U.S., Oct. 30, 2025.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
Goldman Sachs is scheduled to report fourth-quarter earnings before the opening bell Thursday.
Here’s what Wall Street expects:
- Earnings: $11.67 per share, according to LSEG
- Revenue: $13.79 billion, according to LSEG
- Trading revenue: Fixed income of $2.93 billion, equities of $3.70 billion, per StreetAccount
- Investing banking fees: $2.58 billion, per StreetAccount
Goldman Sachs is set up to be a beneficiary of several trends in the fourth quarter.
Trading desks across Wall Street have benefited in the last year as President Donald Trump’s policies have roiled markets for bonds, currencies, commodities and stocks.
For instance, rival JPMorgan Chase topped expectations for fourth-quarter results on equities and fixed income trading revenue that exceeded the StreetAccount estimate by a combined $460 million.
Global investment banking revenue in the quarter was 12% higher than a year ago, according to Dealogic, which should provide a boost to Goldman’s advisory business.
The firm’s asset and wealth management division should also see gains as stock market levels remained buoyant in the quarter.
Finally, the bank said last week that its deal to offload its Apple Card business to JPMorgan would result in a 46-cents-per-share boost to quarterly results.
This story is developing. Please check back for updates.
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