Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) consolidated gains for the fourth session in a row on Tuesday, with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining 796.10 points (+1.26 percent) to close at 63,799.01 points. The market opened on a positive note and remained in the green territory throughout the session. The bullish sentiment was driven by a strong demand for oil and gas exploration companies. This follows media reports indicating that the long-awaited negotiations between the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) regarding the settlement of the energy sector’s circular debt have started. The positive shift in the market is also due to the fact that most companies are reporting a substantial surge in profits. The recent positive momentum of the country’s economy is also an encouraging sign for investors. JS Global in its report said that the market is likely to experience a rally in the oil and gas sector due to the resolution of the circular debt issue. However, it advised caution as the upcoming elections remain a significant market driver, urging the investors to anticipate a “potential short correction before the polls. “In the long term, our outlook on the PSX is bullish,” it added. The benchmark index traded in a range of 708.13 points, showing an intraday high of 63,885.09 points and an intraday low of 63,176.96 points. Among other indices, the KSE All Share Index gained 570.68 points (+1.32 percent) to close at 43,147.97 points. Similarly, the KMI All Share Islamic Index gained 518.60 points (+1.65 percent) to close at 31,471.37 points. Total volumes traded for the KSE-100 Index increased by 34.77 million to 168 million shares against 133.23 million shares in the previous session. Similarly, the overall market volumes increased by 67.37 million shares to 330.92 million shares against 263.55 million shares traded a session earlier. Among scrips, PIAA topped the volumes with 47.06 million shares, followed by OGDC (23.12 million) and CNERGY (21.27 million). Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes included PIAA, OGDC, CNERGY, PRL, and PPL, which formed over 40 percent of total volumes. A total of 333 companies traded shares in the stock exchange against 335 in the previous session, out of which shares of 229 closed up, shares of 77 companies closed down while shares of 27 companies remained unchanged. A total of 93 companies traded shares in the KSE-100 Index against the same number of companies a session earlier, out of which share prices of 69 companies closed up, 18 companies closed down and 6 remained unchanged. The number of total trades increased to 167,225 from 134,816 a session earlier, while the value traded increased by Rs4.47 billion to Rs15.20 billion from Rs10.73 billion a session earlier. In terms of rupee, MARI remained the top gainer with an increase of Rs77.73 (+3.47 percent) per share, closing at Rs2,316.57. The runner-up remained PSEL, the share price of which climbed up by Rs39 (+4.64 percent) to Rs879. APL remained the top loser with a decrease of Rs11.88 (-2.9 percent) per share, closing at Rs397.85, followed by BHWL, the share price of which fell by Rs10.87 (-5.97 percent) to close at Rs171.13 per share. The major sectors taking the index towards north remained oil & gas exploration companies (341 points), commercial banks (164 points), cement (54 points), fertilizer (39 points), oil & gas marketing companies (37 points), refinery (25 points), miscellaneous (24 points), and engineering (20 points). Ten major companies adding points to the index remained OGDC (92 points), PPL (72 points), MARI (36 points), EFERT (23 points), BAHL (21 points), UBL (15 points), SNGP (14 points), PSEL (13 points), and MCB and TRG (12 points each). The major sector depriving the index of points remained automobile assemblers (3 points) and real estate investment truct (one point). Ten major companies depriving the index of points remained SYS (10 points), POL (8 points), FFC (7 points), APL (6 points), FML (4 points), MTL, EPQL and JLICL (2 points each), and BWHL and NRL (one point each.