Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended gains for the fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining 368.21 points (+0.57 percent) to close at 64,822.43 points. The market opened on a positive note and remained in the green throughout the session. The benchmark index breached the 65,000 points level multiple times during the trading; however, stiff resistance brought the index down every time. Heavy interest was seen in OGDC and PPL amid unconfirmed reports over the circular debt management plan, while sectors such as cement and technology also traded in the green. Experts, meanwhile, attributed the ongoing buying spree to several positive developments on the economic front. They said the market is preparing for the start of earnings season and positive results are highly anticipated. In a related development, the State Bank of Pakistan has decided to revamp the foreign exchange trading system and introduce a Centralized Foreign Exchange (FX) Trading Platform called “FX Matching” for the interbank FX market to bring more transparency to the interbank market. Analysts said this centralized trading platform will reduce volatility in the interbank market and support a free and fair FX trading system. The benchmark index traded in a range of 602.14 points, showing an intraday high of 65,063.08 points and an intraday low of 64,460.94 points. Among other indices, the KSE All Share Index gained 328.19 points (+0.75 percent) to close at 43,789.81 points. Similarly, the KMI All Share Islamic Index gained 330.86 points (+1.03 percent) to close at 32,036.91 points. Total volumes traded for the KSE-100 Index increased by 17.2 million to 278.31 million shares against 261.11 million shares in the previous session. Similarly, the overall market volumes increased by 53.27 million shares to 478.98 million shares against 425.71 million shares traded a session earlier. Among scrips, KEL topped the volumes with 67.84 million shares, followed by HASCOL (39.61 million) and PPL (34.48 million). Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes included KEL, HASCOL, PPL, OGDC, and WTL, which formed over 34 percent of total volumes. A total of 349 companies traded shares in the stock exchange against 354 in the previous session, out of which shares of 198 closed up, shares of 128 companies closed down while shares of 23 companies remained unchanged. A total of 94 companies traded shares in the KSE-100 Index against 95 companies in the previous session, out of which share prices of 55 companies closed up, 37 companies closed down and two remained unchanged. The number of total trades increased to 207,529 from 202,287 a session earlier, while the value traded decreased by Rs2.5 billion to Rs22.50 billion from Rs25 billion a session earlier. In terms of rupee, APL remained the top gainer with an increase of Rs28.81 (+7.5 percent) per share, closing at Rs412.88. The runner-up remained IBFL, the share price of which climbed up by Rs23 (+6.2 percent) to Rs394. NESTLE remained the top loser with a decrease of Rs50 (-0.6 percent) per share, closing at Rs8,300, followed by PSEL, the share price of which fell by Rs50 (-5.62 percent) to close at Rs840 per share. The major sectors taking the index towards north remained oil & gas exploration companies (220 points), commercial banks (120 points), cement (75 points), oil & gas marketing companies (20 points), cables and electric goods and chemicals (12 points each), and leather and tanneries (8 points). Ten major companies adding points to the index remained ODGC (110 points), BAHL (20 points), APL and BAFL (16 points each), HMB (14 points), LUCK (13 points), PPL (12 points), MEBL (11 points), HASCOL (10 points), and AIRLINK (7 points). The major sectors taking the index towards south were power generation and distribution (30 points), miscellaneous (20 points), technology and communication (18 points), and fertilizer (16 points). Ten major companies depriving the index of points remained FFC (19 points), PSEL (16 points), HUBC (14 points), TRG (7 points), ILP (4 points), and ISL, HINOON, PTC, PIAA, and HBL (3 points each).