Business
PSX marks best performance in over a decade | The Express Tribune
KARACHI:
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) maintained its powerful upward momentum during the outgoing week, with the benchmark KSE-100 index surging 6,733 points, or 4.15% week-on-week (WoW), to close at 168,990, marking its best nine-month performance since 2009.
The rally was largely driven by strong investor confidence, robust banking sector gains, and optimism about IMF meetings that could shape the near-term economic outlook. On a day-on-day basis, bulls marched ahead at the PSX on Monday, driving the benchmark index to the intra-day peak of 1,646 points. It settled at 163,847, up 1,590 points (0.98%).
On Tuesday, continuing its powerful bullish streak, the bourse closed the final session of the month at 165,494, notching up gains of 1,646 points, or 1%.
Wednesday was a topsy-turvy day as the KSE-100 swung between gains and losses before closing nearly flat at 165,640, posting a modest rise of 146 points, or 0.09%.
Following a brief pause, the PSX roared back into action on Thursday, extending its historic rally as the KSE-100 closed at 168,490, up 2,849 points (+1.72%), marking yet another record high. Continuing its record-setting run, the market touched the intra-day high of 169,989 (+1,499 points) on Friday before paring gains to close at 168,990, still higher by 500 points (0.30%).
Arif Habib Limited (AHL) noted in its weekly review that the KSE-100 index closed at 168,990, up 6,733 points (4.15% WoW). The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September 2025 came in at 5.6% year-on-year (YoY) compared to 3% in August. In the latest T-bill auction, yields surged 19-40 basis points (bps), with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) raising Rs730.4 billion against the target of Rs750 billion, while participation remained robust at Rs1,494.7 billion, AHL said.
In September, total cement dispatches rose 7.05% to 4.25 million tons compared to 3.97 million tons in September 2024, taking 1QFY26 volumes to 12.16 million tons, higher by 16.3% against 10.46 million tons last year.
In Sept’25, fertiliser offtake showed mixed trends where urea sales rose 17% YoY to 429k tons, while DAP sales slumped 47% YoY to 71k tons, reflecting weak farm economics and lower imports.
In September, petroleum sales rose 8% YoY and 5% month-on-month (MoM) to 1.37 million tons, driven by strong motor spirit and high-speed diesel demand, while furnace oil volumes declined on reduced reliance for power generation. Cumulatively, in 1QFY26, sales increased 6% YoY to 3.89 million tons compared to 3.68 million tons last year.
Also, Pakistan recorded a trade deficit of $3.3 billion in September, with exports at $2.5 billion (down 11.7% YoY, up 3.6% MoM) and imports at $5.8 billion (up 14% YoY, 10.5% MoM), taking the 1QFY26 deficit to $9.4 billion, higher by 32.9% YoY.
Pakistan’s foreign currency reserves rose to $19.80 billion (+$3.4 million), including the SBP’s reserves of $14.40 billion (+$21 million). Pakistani rupee appreciated marginally by 0.03% WoW, closing at 281.37 against the US dollar, AHL added.
“The KSE-100 index extended its bullish momentum yet again as the PSX delivered its best nine-month performance since 2009, closing at 168,990 points, up 4% WoW, supported by improved investor sentiment,” Syed Danyal Hussain of JS Global mentioned in his report. Notably, the banking sector was the major contributor to the rally, adding 4,313 points to the index. Average volumes dropped 11% WoW to 1,484 million shares. The positive trend was reinforced as Pakistan successfully repaid a $500 million Eurobond, with another $1.3 billion repayment scheduled for April 2026, he said.
On the macro front, the CPI for September 2025 stood at 5.6% YoY (1QFY26 inflation averaged at 4.2%). Furthermore, fiscal concerns persisted as the Federal Board of Revenue missed its 1QFY26 tax target by Rs200 billion, collecting Rs2.88 trillion against the target of Rs3.08 trillion, Hussain added.
1729471601-0/image-(8)1729471601-0-640x480.webp "Pakistan’s crisis differs from world | The Express Tribune")
New Delhi: Several crucial deadlines have been extended in December 2025, including ITR for tax audit cases, ITR filing and PAN and Aadhaar linking. These deadlines will be crucial in ensuring that your financial affairs operate smoothly in the months ahead.
Here is a quick rundown of the important deadlines for December to help you stay compliant and avoid last-minute hassles.
ITR deadline for tax audit cases
The Central Board of Direct Taxes has extended the due date of furnishing of return of income under sub-Section (1) of Section 139 of the Act for the Assessment Year 2025-26 which is October 31, 2025 in the case of assessees referred in clause (a) of Explanation 2 to sub-Section (1) of Section 139 of the Act, to December 10, 2025.
Belated ITR filing deadline
A belated ITR filing happens when an ITR is submitted after the original due date which is permitted by Section 139(4) of the Income Tax Act. Filing a belated return helps you meet your tax obligations, but it involves penalties. You can only file a belated return for FY 2024–25 until December 31, 2025. However, there will be a late fee and interest charged.
PAN and Aadhaar linking deadline
The Income Tax Department has extended the deadline to link their PAN with Aadhaar card to December 31, 2025 for anyone who acquired their PAN using an Aadhaar enrolment ID before October 1, 2024. If you miss this deadline your PAN will become inoperative which will have an impact on your banking transactions, income tax return filing and other financial investments.
Business
Stock Market Live Updates: Sensex, Nifty Hit Record Highs; Bank Nifty Climbs 60,000 For The First Time
Stock Market News Live Updates: Indian equity benchmarks opened with a strong gap-up on Monday, December 1, touching fresh record highs, buoyed by a sharp acceleration in Q2FY26 GDP growth to a six-quarter peak of 8.2%. Positive cues from Asian markets further lifted investor sentiment.
The BSE Sensex was trading at 85,994, up 288 points or 0.34%, after touching an all-time high of 86,159 in early deals. The Nifty 50 stood at 26,290, higher by 87 points or 0.33%, after scaling a record intraday high of 26,325.8.
Broader markets also saw gains, with the Midcap index rising 0.27% and the Smallcap index advancing 0.52%.
On the sectoral front, the Nifty Bank hit a historic milestone by crossing the 60,000 mark for the first time, gaining 0.4% to touch a fresh peak of 60,114.05.
Meanwhile, the Metal and PSU Bank indices climbed 0.8% each in early trade.
Global cues
Asia-Pacific markets were mostly lower on Monday as traders assessed fresh Chinese manufacturing data and increasingly priced in the likelihood of a US Federal Reserve rate cut later this month.
According to the CME FedWatch Tool, markets are now assigning an 87.4 per cent probability to a rate cut at the Fed’s December 10 meeting.
China’s factory activity unexpectedly slipped back into contraction in November, with the RatingDog China General Manufacturing PMI by S&P Global easing to 49.9, below expectations of 50.5, as weak domestic demand persisted.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 1.6 per cent, while the broader Topix declined 0.86 per cent. In South Korea, the Kospi dropped 0.30 per cent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.31 per cent.
US stock futures were steady in early Asian trade after a positive week on Wall Street. On Friday, in a shortened post-Thanksgiving session, the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.65 per cent to 23,365.69, its fifth consecutive day of gains.
The S&P 500 rose 0.54 per cent to 6,849.09, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 289.30 points, or 0.61 per cent, to close at 47,716.42.
Osmond ChiaBusiness reporter
Getty ImagesSouth Korea’s largest online retailer, Coupang, has apologised for a massive data breach potentially involving nearly 34 million local customer accounts.
The country’s internet authority said that it is investigating the breach and that details from the millions of accounts have likely been exposed.
Coupang is often described as South Korea’s equivalent of Amazon.com. The breach marks the latest in a series of data leaks at major firms in the country, including its telecommunications giant, SK Telecom.
Coupang told the BBC it became aware of the unauthorised access of personal data of about 4,500 customer accounts on 18 November and immediately reported it to the authorities.
But later checks found that some 33.7 million customer accounts – all in South Korea – were likely exposed, said Coupang, adding that the breach is believed to have begun as early as June through a server based overseas.
The exposed data is limited to name, email address, phone number, shipping address and some order histories, Coupang said.
No credit card information or login credentials were leaked. Those details remain securely protected and no action is required from Coupang users at this point, the firm added.
The number of accounts affected by the incident represents more than half of South Korea’s roughly-52 million population.
Coupang, which is founded in South Korea and headquartered in the US, said recently that it had nearly 25 million active users.
Coupang apologised to its customers and warned them to stay alert to scams impersonating the company.
The firm did not give details on who is behind the breach.
South Korean media outlets reported on Sunday that a former Coupang employee from China was suspected of being behind the breach.
The authorities are assessing the scale of the breach as well as whether Coupang had broken any data protection safety rules, South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT said in a statement.
“As the breach involves the contact details and addresses of a large number of citizens, the Commission plans to conduct a swift investigation and impose strict sanctions if it finds a violation of the duty to implement safety measures under the Protection Act.”
The incident marks the latest in a series of breaches affecting major South Korean companies this year, despite the country’s reputation for stringent data privacy rules.
SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest mobile operator, was fined nearly $100m (£76m) over a data breach involving more than 20 million subscribers.
In September, Lotte Cards also said the data of nearly three million customers was leaked after a cyber-attack on the credit card firm.
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Key Financial Deadlines That Have Been Extended For December 2025; Know The Last Date
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