Islamabad - Pakistan's stock market hit a record in intra-day trading Thursday, buoyed by a sense of political stability in the country after a new prime minister was inaugurated. The Karachi Stock Exchange 100 Index hit 15,307 by mid-morning, an increase of 0.7 per cent.
"On the political side, things are moving in the right direction," JS Global Capital director Mohd Sohail said. "Stability is on the cards."
Yousuf Raza Gillani was sworn in as prime minister Tuesday as head of a coalition government after a year in which Pakistan saw a state of emergency, the sacking of top judges, a boycotted presidential election and the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.
Pakistan's market is protected from the current global economic turmoil because it's a more local economy with about 6 per cent of the market's capitalization from overseas.
"That is low compared to other countries, so when there is a sell-off by foreigners, it has less effect," Sohail said. "It is largely protected from foreign forces."
About 4 billion to 5 billion dollars of the Karachi exchange's 75 billion dollars in capitalization is foreign capital.
