An “all is well” sentiment prevailed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday as market participants welcomed the government’s reform-oriented budget measures and responded positively to reports of a preliminary peace agreement between the United States and Iran.

The optimism was fuelled by announcements from US and Iranian officials that they had reached an initial agreement to end hostilities and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil shipping route. While the accord remains preliminary, it has eased geopolitical concerns, pushed international oil prices lower and revived hopes for further negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme.

Read: US, Iran reach preliminary agreement to end war, signing set for Friday

Against this backdrop, the benchmark KSE-100 index opened on a strong footing, reflecting a sharp improvement in investor confidence. The market’s mood turned distinctly bullish, with the index surging by 4,367.11 points, or 2.53%, to 176,767.01 by 9:34am.

Broad-based buying was witnessed across major sectors, including commercial banks, fertiliser, cement, oil and gas exploration companies, oil marketing companies (OMCs) and refineries, as investors rushed to build positions amid improving economic and geopolitical prospects.

Read more: Money is there, just not in budget

Although the rally witnessed intermittent fluctuations during the session, the benchmark index remained firmly in positive territory and touched an intraday high of 176,917.76 points and a low of 175,085.79 points. By 12:43pm, the KSE-100 index stood at 175,746.63, showing a handsome gain of 3,346.73 points or (1.94%) till filing of this report at 12:41 pm

The market remained buoyant on strong investor interest, with traded volume reaching 250.85 million shares and turnover amounting to Rs26.78 billion.