Business

Oil dips, stocks mixed on US-Iran truce hopes

Published

2 weeks ago

May 30, 2026

Bilal

– Stock markets were mixed while oil prices fell again on Friday (May 29) on investor optimism that the United States and Iran would reach a deal to extend their ceasefire – despite Washington and Tehran offering conflicting views on the state of negotiations.

Oil markets have been up and down this week as investors assess the chances of a breakthrough deal that could potentially resume shipping through the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

Those hopes had been briefly dashed by new US military strikes on Iran on Wednesday, countered by the Revolutionary Guard’s targeting of an American airbase in the region.

On Friday, US President Donald Trump held a meeting during which he said he would make a “final determination” on a peace deal. Iran’s foreign ministry said negotiations were ongoing and there was no final agreement.

Nevertheless, the reports of progress sent the S&P 500 to a record high before it pared those gains slightly at the close. Other Wall Street indices also rose on Friday, while Europe’s main markets were flat ahead of the weekend.

While details of the possible agreement are scarce, “oil traders are taking an optimistic view that the end could be in sight for disruption in the region,” said Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.

However, “the market’s patience may be tested if a deal is not agreed by early June, and this could have big ramifications for the oil price and the global stock market rally,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management told AFP the tech sector was continuing to drive equity markets.

“It looks like we’ll wrap up a ninth consecutive week of higher markets, largely driven by some new names coming out to be beneficiaries of artificial intelligence today,” he said, citing Dell, Micron and SanDisk among individual companies that have delivered big gains.

EUROPEAN INFLATION

In Europe, French data showed Friday that its economy contracted 0.1 per cent in the first quarter, while inflation in May accelerated to 2.4 per cent, above the ECB’s target of two percent.

Germany saw inflation slow in May to 2.6 per cent, though analysts still expect an interest rate hike for the eurozone, possibly at the next ECB meeting on June 11.

Still, “recession risks are easing as oil prices moderate and the probability of worst-case scenarios fades,” wrote Matthew Martin of Oxford Economics.

“While reduced risks from the war have helped, the improvement in equity prices is mostly because of a robust earnings season. The driver is overwhelmingly AI-related capital expenditure,” he said.

Global AI bullishness has driven a historic rally recently, this week pushing the market capitalizations of chipmakers Micron and SK hynix across the US$1 trillion threshold.

Seoul’s stock market led the charge in Asia on Friday, surging 3.6 per cent while Tokyo’s Nikkei closed at a record high.

Business

PSX crosses 176,000 points on US-Iran peace pact, investor confidence boosted

Published

8 hours ago

June 15, 2026

Bilal

Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) recorded substantial rally on the first trading day of the week after news of agreement between Iran and United States which improved sentiments across regional financial markets.

The KSE-100 had kicked off the trading session on a bullish note, adding more than 4,500 points. The KSE-100 Index shot up to 176,917 points, a huge progress over last session.

The benchmark index finished at 172,399 points on the last trading day of the previous week. That recent rally has seen good purchasing and a better feeling among investors.

Meanwhile, share markets in Asia jumped on Monday (Oct 2) while the dollar sank and oil prices tumbled as a tentative peace deal between the United States and Iran raised hopes of easing inflationary pressures internationally and lessening the need for higher interest rates.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated on social media early Monday that an agreement had been reached, while President Donald Trump said the agreement includes opening the crucial Strait of Hormuz, without details.

Business

State Bank to declare final monetary policy of fiscal year today

Published

8 hours ago

June 15, 2026

Bilal

The State Bank of Pakistan will unveil the final monetary policy for this fiscal year today, with financial markets and institutions closely monitoring the critical decision on the interest rate.

Financial polls show that 49 percent of respondents expect the central bank to maintain the interest rate in the next monetary policy. Similarly, 49 percent believe that the State Bank may hike the interest rate in the forthcoming policy announcement.

Budget 2026-27 moves forward a lot for economic growth: Aurangzeb

The study also finds that 34 percent of respondents expect the Monetary Policy Committee to raise the interest rate by 50 basis points, while 15 percent think the increase may be as high as 100 basis points. But 2 percent of respondents anticipate a possible interest rate reduction.

Market watchers expect the central bank to keep interest rate at 11.5 percent supported by lowering global oil prices, contained inflation trends and stability in the rupee.

Business

Aurangzeb says IMF had not asked for a tariff on solar panels

Published

1 day ago

June 14, 2026

Bilal

He disputed allegations that the government had considering taxing solar panels before the budget. ‘There was never any such demand from the IMF and the topic was never discussed,’ he said.

Aurangzeb stated in a media interaction that the government is working on a set of structural reforms in the energy sector to bring down electricity rates, improve the business environment and increase the competitiveness of major industries, according to a federal minister.

In reply to questions on the high energy costs and capacity charges carried over by successive governments, the minister said expensive power continues to pose a serious problem to industry including manufacturing, information technology, mining and other energy-intensive industries.

He said the government, in partnership with Energy Minister Awais Leghari, had already taken steps to remove cross-subsidies for industry and was pursuing changes through wheeling policy and other measures to increase efficiency in the electricity sector.

Read More : Solar panels, inverters, lithium batteries’ prices soar ahead of budget

The government is moving from short-term relief to more extensive, long-term structural reforms, the minister said. These efforts are to be expected to bear fruit in the coming years rather than immediately, he said.

Privatisation of energy distribution companies (DISCOs) is a crucial part of the reform agenda. The minister said three DISCOs had already been awarded expression of interest (EOI) and two more EOIs will soon be awarded. He said he was certain that the first batch of distribution businesses would be handed over to private sector management by the end of the year, with the rest to follow in phases.

There would need to be more regulatory control to accompany privatisation and work was beginning to ensure the regulatory system would be robust and effective, he said.

He also emphasised the ambitions to shift away from the existing single-buyer energy market model, controlled through the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA), to a competitive multi-buyer system. “The change will help dismantle existing monopolistic structures and improve market efficiency,” he said.