In determining representative companies to compute the index on, companies with the highest market capitalization are selected. However, to ensure full market representation, the company with the highest market capitalization from each sector is also included.[2]
KSE-100 index touched the highest ever benchmark of 14,814 points on December 26, 2007, a day before the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, when the index nosedived.[5]
April 20: Karachi Stock Exchange achieved a major milestone when KSE-100 Index crossed the psychological level of 15,000 for the first time in its history and peaked 15,737.32 on 20 April 2008. Moreover, the increase of 7.4 per cent in 2008 made it the best performer among major emerging markets.[6][7]
May 23: Record high inflation in the month of May, 2008 resulted in the unexpected increase in the interest rates by State Bank of Pakistan which eventually resulted in sharp fall in Karachi Stock Exchange.[8][9]
July 17: Angry investors attacked the Karachi Stock Exchange in protest at plunging Pakistani share prices.[10][8]
July 16: KSE-100 Index dropped one-third from an all-time high hit in April, 2008 as rising pressure on shaky Pakistan's coalition government to tackle Taliban militants exacerbates concern about the country's economic woes.[11]
August 18: KSE 100 Index rose more than 4% after the announcement of the resignation of President Pervez Musharraf but Credit Suisse Group said that Pakistan's Post-Musharraf rally in Stock Exchange will be short-lived because of a rising fiscal deficit and runaway inflation.[12][8]
August 28 : Karachi Stock Exchange set a floor for stock prices to halt a plunge that has wiped out $36.9 billion of market value since April.[8]
December 15: Trading resumes after the removal of floor on stock prices that was set on August 28 to halt sharp falls.[8]
As of 7 November 2012 the index recorded highest level of 16,218 points and now KSE is being considered as a best emerging market in Asia with returns in financial 2011-2012 up to 40%-50%.
As of April 30, KSE-100 Index recorded a new increase in its value standing at 28,913 points, that is more than 45.2% since the last fiscal year of 2012–2013.[13]
On May 25, 2017, the KSE-100 index reached the all-time high of 53,124 points, later it tanked to 37,919 points in a matter of seven months.[17]
Following Britain's decision to leave EU on 24 June, KSE dropped 1,100 points (3.1 percent) as stock markets went in turmoil as investors sought safe havens like gold and government bonds.[18]
The first case of COVID-19 in Pakistan was reported on 26 February 2020. Its impact resulted in the fall of around 62% of KSE-100 index, lowest at 27,200 on March 25, 2020, from the high of 43,218 points on January 13, 2020. Despite the fall greater than 2005 and 2008 crisis, The market remained calm and confident, and no investors have made accusations of market manipulations and unfair trading.[19]
The following table shows the annual performance of the KSE 100 Index based on closing on 31 December each year, which was calculated back to 1990 when the index was launched.[34][35]
KSE began with a 50 shares index. As the market grew, a representative index was needed. On November 1, 1991, the KSE-100 was introduced and remains to this date the most generally accepted measure of the Exchange. The KSE-100 is a capitalisation-weighted index and consists of 100 companies representing about 90 percent of market capitalisation of the Exchange.
In 1995, the need was felt for an all share index to reconfirm the KSE-100 and also to provide the basis of index trading in future. On August 29, 1995, the KSE all share index was constructed and introduced on September 18, 1995.
The KSE 100 index reached its highest ever 53,103 points in May 2017.