A wave of cheer swept through the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday as renewed hopes of easing geopolitical tensions and a shift in Washington's political dynamics following the United States midterm elections lifted investor confidence.  Reflecting the upbeat mood, the benchmark KSE-100 Index surged 3,994.62 points, or 2.38% to settle at 172,013.48 points, crossing another major milestone and posting one of its strongest single-session gains in recent trading history. The market had opened on a positive note, with the index gaining 1,707.48 points, or 1.02%, to reach 169,726.34 at 10:04am. A further boost to market sentiment came from the decline in international oil prices, which eased as investors weighed the implications of the US midterm election results against uncertainty over Washington's next move in the US-Israeli war on Iran. The combination of softer oil prices and hopes of a possible easing of geopolitical tensions provided an encouraging backdrop for equities, supporting the upbeat mood at the local bourse. Internationally, Brent crude futures fell $1.75, or 0.7%, to $101.85 a barrel at 10:34am GMT, after dropping as much as $2 earlier in the session. Similarly, US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures declined $1.18, or 1.2%, to $94.91 a barrel, reversing an earlier gain of $1. Read: PSX gains over 1,400 points on renewed buying “Buying by institutional investors and funds, hopes of a shift in the US political landscape following the midterm elections, reports of a draft proposal between the US and Iran, and relatively stable oil prices around $103 a barrel all contributed to the market's positive momentum,” Arif Habib Limited (AHL) Head of Research Sana Tawfik told The Express Tribune. She added that investors were closely monitoring geopolitical developments, particularly the US midterm election results, which indicated a shift in the balance of political power in Washington. Cumulatively, trading volume jumped to 841.6 million shares from Tuesday’s total of 517.3 million while the value of traded shares stood at Rs35.3 billion. Shares of 499 companies were traded in the ready market, of which 368 stocks closed higher, 103 fell and 28 remained unchanged. TPL Properties became the volume topper with trading in 67.9 million shares, gaining Rs0.68 to close at Rs12.67.