September 3, 2020 (MLN): The COVID-19 is one of the many reasons why the current (read: cursed) year shall be remembered for many years to come. The virus, which started as an epidemic and soon became a pandemic, crippled economies across the globe, leaving them in a highly devastating state.
The suffering mostly came in the form of disappointing performances of stock markets around the world, be it developed nations like China and the USA or developing countries such as Pakistan. The period between February and March was the most gruesome, as that is when all these countries witnessed their stock markets crashing by a jaw-dropping margin.
The swiftness with which coronavirus took the entire planet in its grip was surely surprising, and the time it took for all these nations to act and respond was equally surprising. But what is more startling is that Pakistan, out of all these nations, emerged as the one that demonstrated strong resilience, something which is quite apparent when looking at the recovery rate of the Pakistan Stock Exchange.
This was stated by one of the leading financial market research firm based in New York, which further said that Pakistan’s stock market is the best performer in Asia and the fourth best performing stock market in the world. The PSX, as per the report, generated a US dollar-adjusted return of 38.5% in the months following the period between Feb-Mar.
This surprising victory and adulation of a country like Pakistan is definitely not surprising to those who have been privy to the actions of the government and witnessed firsthand the aggressive strategies undertaken to control the outbreak and revive the economy.
‘According to the Economic Times, Pakistan’s central bank has been more aggressive in cutting interest rates and stimulating the economy than many of its counterparts. As bond yields in the nation fell below double-digits, foreign capital has been flowing in making Pakistan’s stock market the best performer in Asia’, the report added.
In July and August alone, PSX generated returns of 14.05% and 4.72% respectively, thus proving that the economy is not only picking up but flying higher. In fact, for the first time in many months, the PSX saw itself surpassing the 41,000 mark and since then, the momentum has only been getting stronger.
The report also shed some light on the performances of Denmark, India, and China. While India’s position remains uncertain as it is still trying hard to combat the outbreak, China’s Shanghai Composite Index has climbed 27.6%, which makes it one of the few global indices that have delivered positive returns.
Similarly, Denmark’s OMX Copenhagen 25 has surged by 14% year-to-date, which translates into a return of 20% after taking into account currency fluctuations. The reason for Denmark’s spectacular performance has been attributed to the structure of the country’s index, as half of the largest stocks are healthcare and pharmaceutical companies. The report adds that these companies have always been recession-proof but have outperformed during a global health crisis.
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