KARACHI: The Managing Committee of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), in its meeting held on Thursday, unanimously elected Muhammad Idrees as its President for 2021/22, while Abdul Rehman Naqi has been elected as senior vice president and Qazi Zahid Hussain as vice president, a statement said. Muhammad Idrees, who remained associated with … Read more
BRUSSELS: The European Union (EU) announced on Thursday that it will impose a universal charger for smartphones, setting up a clash with Apple and its widely used iPhone. The European Commission believes a standard cable for all devices will cut back on electronic waste, but Apple argues that a one-size fits all charger would slow … Read more
TAIPEI: China on Thursday said it opposed Taiwan joining a major trans-Pacific trade deal just days after Beijing said it wanted to become a member of the same agreement. Signed by 11 Asia-Pacific countries in 2018, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is the region’s biggest free-trade pact and accounts for around 13.5 … Read more
LONDON: The Bank of England on Thursday maintained its stimulus amount and record-low interest rate, even as it warned that UK annual inflation would top 4 per cent this year. The BoE’s nine-strong monetary policy committee (MPC) voted unanimously to hold its key borrowing cost at 0.1 per cent, a statement said. Policymakers voted 7-2 in … Read more
KARACHI: The Karachi Interbank Offered Rate (Kibor) has increased to a 16-month high, causing concerns over further rise in the policy rate. Analysts at Topline Securities said that the Kibor, which is a benchmark lending rate used in Pakistan, has surged 76 basis points to 8.11 per cent in 2021 to-date. This compares to the … Read more
KARACHI: The rupee lost 35 paisas against the dollar on Thursday, as external demand continued to keep pressure on the exchange rate. The exchange rate ended at Rs169.03 against the greenback from the previous day’s closing of Rs138.68 in the interbank foreign exchange market. The dealers said quarter closing escalated the demand for the foreign … Read more
KARACHI: Employers’ Federation of Pakistan president Ismail Suttar has strongly condemned the discordant decision of the Federal Board Revenue (FBR) to amend the Tax Laws Ordinance without consulting the stakeholders, a statement said on Thursday. Ismail termed the move irrational and unwelcoming because most transactions are carried out through the post-dated cheques, and without a … Read more
ROME: Italy said Thursday it had asked Pakistan to extradite the parents of a teenage girl suspected of having been murdered by her family after refusing an arranged marriage. The announcement came after news Wednesday that the uncle of 18-year-old Saman Abbas had been arrested in Paris, accused of her murder alongside her parents and … Read more
COLOMBO: A high-profile shaman who tried to end Sri Lanka’s Covid-19 outbreak with “blessed” water has died of the virus, his family said on Thursday. Eliyantha White, 48, who treated sports stars and top politicians including the country’s prime minister, claimed in November he could end the pandemic in Sri Lanka and neighbouring India by … Read more
WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden’s administration will announce a new rule Thursday drastically cutting the use of a group of powerful greenhouse gases commonly found in refrigerators and air conditioners, officials said. The super-pollutants, known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), can be hundreds to thousands times more potent than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere, exacerbating … Read more
WASHINGTON: The chairman of the US Federal Reserve called on lawmakers to raise the nation’s borrowing limit urgently on Wednesday, warning that failure to pay government debts would do “severe damage” to the economy. “It’s just very important that the debt ceiling be raised in a timely fashion so the United States can pay its bills … Read more
LAHORE: Punjab Law and Cooperatives Minister Raja Basharat on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the mechanism to merge Border Military Police (BMP) and Baloch Levies (BL) to improve the law and order situation in tribal areas of Punjab. The meeting took place at the Civil Secretariat which was attended by Punjab Assembly Deputy … Read more
WASHINGTON: Will they or won’t they? Markets worldwide will be holding their collective breaths on Wednesday, as they await the Fed Reserve’s decision on whether it will begin to close the taps on its monetary stimulus. The growing consensus is that the much-anticipated first step will not be announced until November and ultimately begin in December. … Read more
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will seek an emergency loan of $100 million from the World Bank (WB) for a coronavirus vaccination drive, officials said on Wednesday, as the country struggles with an acute currency crisis. The Covid-19 pandemic has claimed more than 12,000 lives and infected over half a million people in Sri Lanka, which is also … Read more
WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) board of directors met Tuesday over the charges that its director Kristalina Georgieva pressured staff in 2017 when she was the World Bank CEO to change data in a key ranking report to paint China in a more positive light. The board did not announce any immediate decision and said … Read more
KARACHI: The rupee fell by 16 paisas against the dollar on Wednesday, owing to the demand for import and corporate payments, dealers said. The exchange rate ended at Rs168.68 against the greenback from the previous day’s closing of Rs168.52 in the interbank foreign exchange market. The dealers said the demand for external payment kept the … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Wednesday a threat to New Zealand’s cricket team that prompted them to call off a tour of Pakistan came in an email that originated in India. Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad with Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid, he said the cancellation of the tour was the result … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s economic growth rebounded to 3.9 per cent in the fiscal year FY 2021 ended June 30, 2021 and is expected to reach 4 per cent in FY 2022, as the business activity gradually resumes in the second year of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a report … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan called on the Taliban to form an inclusive government and warned that failure to do so could see the country descend into civil war. In an interview with the BBC, PM Imran said all neighbours of Afghanistan would collectively decide about recognition of the new Afghan government, keeping in view … Read more
ISLAMABAD: A meeting of the Central Development Working Party (CDWP), presided over by Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan, recommended a project worth Rs20.17 billion to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) for further consideration. A project related to transport and communications presented in the meeting, “Construction of Infrastructure (Flyover/Underpass Structure) … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Shaukat Tarin presided over the meeting on the establishment of Pakistan International E-payment Gateway (IPG). The IPG will pave the way for financial inclusion and payment digitalisation, which is a sub-component of the nine pillars of the e-Commerce policy. A consultative session was held with all the relevant … Read more
KARACHI: Pakistan Stocks started the day on a positive note supported by the banking stocks, as the central bank raised the interest rate by 25bps to curtail the rising current account deficit and higher expected inflation numbers. However, massive selling was seen in the last hours, as investors preferred to offload positions due to the … Read more
ISLAMABAD: State Bank of Pakistan’s Deputy Governor Sima Kamil urged the ‘financial sector to realise its role as a key player’ for the promotion of regulatory policy that focus on women’s access to finance and digital financial inclusion. “The financial sector also needs to realise its role as a key player in advancing regulatory policy … Read more
KARACHI: The rupee recovered 20 paisas against the dollar on Tuesday, owing to the supply of foreign currency during the day, dealers said. The exchange rate ended at Rs168.52 against the dollar from the previous day’s closing of Rs168.72 in the interbank foreign exchange market. The dealers said the market witnessed inflows of export receipts … Read more
PARIS: The OECD warned on Tuesday of an ‘uneven’ global economic recovery, as it lowered its 2021 growth forecasts for the world and the United States, while raising the outlook for Europe. The world economy has bounced back this year on the back of stimulus measures, the rollout of effective Covid vaccines and the resumption of … Read more
KARACHI: Around 35 per cent of the total return filers declare zero income, a senior government official said on Monday. According to a statement issued by the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Federal Finance and Revenue Minister Shaukat Tarin met the business community on Sunday to discuss the Tax Laws (Third Amendment) Ordinance, … Read more
KARACHI: The rupee depreciated 53 paisas against the dollar on Monday, as external payments kept the demand higher for the foreign currency. The exchange rate ended at Rs168.72 against the dollar from last Friday’s closing of Rs168.19 in the interbank foreign exchange market. The dealers said the dollar demand remained high because of the first … Read more
ISLAMABAD: Highlighting the unfolding economic crisis in Pakistan, Senator Sherry Rehman said that the country is facing an economic crisis with no respite in sight. “It comes as no surprise that according to a recent Ipsos survey, 62% of Pakistanis have expressed dissatisfaction with the federal government’s performance when it comes to controlling inflation. The … Read more
