MULTAN: The death toll from a gas tanker truck explosion that happend last week in central Pakistan has jumped to 18, police and hospital officials said on Tuesday.
Police initially said five people were killed and about two dozen others were injured when a truck carrying liquified petroleum gas caught fire near an industrial area in Multan, a city in the country’s most populous Punjab province.
Mohammad Wasim, a doctor at Multan’s Nishtar Hospital, said another 13 people have died in the week since the Jan. 27 blast. He added that another seven people who were injured in the blast were still in critical condition.
Mohammad Bashir, a senior police official, said the blast also damaged nearby shops and homes, and the deaths were caused by the fire and the collapse of several roofs.
He said an initial police investigation showed that the gas tanker truck had exploded while some people were transferring LPG from the truck to cylinders after bribing the driver, who has been arrested.
Death toll from last week’s gas tanker explosion in Pakistan rises to 18
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Death toll from last week’s gas tanker explosion in Pakistan rises to 18
- Truck carrying liquified petroleum gas had caught fire near an industrial area in Multan
- Blast damaged nearby structures, deaths caused by ensuing fire and collapse of several roofs
Pakistan stocks close at record high over current account surplus, falling bond yields
- KSE-100 index gains 1,646.79 points or 0.97% to close at new high of 171,960.64 points
- Pakistan’s central bank posted a current account surplus of $100 million in November
KARACHI: Pakistani stocks closed at an all-time high of 171,960.4 points on Thursday, with financial analysts attributing the surge to increasing investor confidence stemming from a current account surplus reported in November and a drop in government bond yields.
The benchmark KSE-100 index gained 1,646.79 points or 0.97% to close at an all-time high of 171,960.64 points on Thursday. The previous day, Pakistani stocks surged to 170,313.85 points at close of business.
Ahsan Mehanti, chief executive officer at Arif Habib Commodities, said the optimistic mood at the stock exchange was fueled by the $100 million current account surplus reported by the central bank in November.
“Speculations ahead of year-end close and fall in government bond yields up to 70 basis points after the SBP (State Bank of Pakistan) policy easing played the catalyst role in bullish activity at PSX,” Mehanti told Arab News.
The surplus was a welcome development for Islamabad as Pakistan’s central bank reported a $291 million deficit in October.
Topline Securities, a Pakistani brokerage firm, said in its daily market review that strong buying by local funds followed a drop in Pakistan Investment Bond (PIB) yields, which boosted investor confidence.
PIB yields are the returns on bonds or government-backed securities that pay fixed semi-annual interest, with rates influenced by market demand and SBP auctions.
“Strength in ENGRO (Engro Corporation), FFC (Fauji Fertilizer Company), UBL (United Bank Limited), LUCK (Lucky Cement) and BAHL (Bank AL Habib) underpinned positive momentum, collectively contributing 1,504 points to the index,” the brokerage firm wrote on X.
“This upside was partly offset by declines in PIOC (Pakistan International Oil Company), DHPL (D.H. Corporation Limited) and MLCF (Millat Tractor Limited), which together subtracted 176 points.”
The sustained rise in equities comes amid improving liquidity conditions and continued investor participation, with market participants focusing on corporate earnings, sector-specific developments and broader macroeconomic signals.
Earlier on Monday, Pakistan’s central bank cut its key policy interest rate by 50 basis points to 10.5%, a move that surprised analysts and followed four consecutive policy meetings where rates were held unchanged.
The cut came despite an International Monetary Fund staff report earlier this month cautioning against premature monetary easing.
Inflation eased to 6.1% in November, remaining within the SBP’s target band, though analysts have warned that price pressures could resurface later in the fiscal year as base effects fade and food and transport costs remain volatile.
