Bulls grabbed control of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday, with the market rising by more than 3,000 points, which analysts credit to the government's readiness to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after the budget.
The federal government has set a tough tax collection target of Rs 13 trillion for the upcoming fiscal year, an almost 40% increase over the current year, in the budget.
The benchmark KSE-100 index rose by 3,000 points, or 3.85%, to 75,600.60 points during intraday trading, up from 72,797.43 points at the previous close.
"The market has increased as the budget is expected to get Pakistan [the] IMF [deal]," said Samiullah Tariq, head of research at Pak-Kuwait Investment Company.
The budget document stated that key objectives for the forthcoming fiscal year include lowering the public debt-to-GDP ratio to manageable levels and emphasizing improvements in Pakistan's balance of payments condition.
While presenting the budget, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb forecast a significant reduction in the fiscal deficit for the next fiscal year to 5.9% of GDP, down from an upwardly revised projection of 7.4% for the current year.
To fulfill its objectives, the federal government would also try to broaden the tax base rather than burdening existing taxpayers, according to Aurangzeb.