Pakistan’s benchmark share index closed at a record high of 73,085 points, up 0.6%, after hitting an intraday record of 73,449, according to data from the Pakistan Stock Exchange website.

The index has surged 77.9% over the past year and is up 13% year-to-date.

“The index closing above 73,000 for the first time is driven by high remittances, growth in foreign exchange reserves following disbursements from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and easing inflation,” Adnan Sheikh, assistant vice president at Pak Kuwait Investment Company said.

Pakistan’s consumer price inflation slowed to 17.3% in April from a year earlier, the lowest reading in nearly two years and below the finance ministry’s projections.

Pakistan had been beset by inflation above 20% since May 2022. Inflation jumped as high as 38% in May 2023, as the country navigated reforms as part of an IMF bailout programme.

The country plans to approach the IMF again for a longer-term programme by early July. It completed its nine-month standby arrangement, which it secured last summer to help avert a sovereign default.

Upon completing the program, the South Asian country received around $1.1 billion from the fund as the final tranche in April.

Foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank rose to $9.12 billion during the week ending May 3, the highest it’s been in almost two years.

An IMF mission is likely to visit Pakistan within the next 10 days to discuss a new bailout programme, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb told a news conference on Tuesday.

The IMF and finance minister did not specify the dates of the visit, nor the size or duration of the programme.