ISLAMABAD, Oct 16 (ABC): The Department of Civil Engineering of Pakistan Railways, in a summary moved to the Ministry of Railways, has demanded huge grant of money for the restoration of infrastructure damaged by massive torrential rains and floods. The Civil Engineering Department required about Rs 53 billion to restore the signals system, as many as Rs 60 billion to …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 16 (ABC):Tobacco exports during the second month of fiscal year of 2022-23 increased by 97.36 percent as compared to the exports of the commodity during the corresponding period of last year. During the period from July 22-August 22, tobacco worth US$ 10,253,000 were exported as compared to the exports of US $ 5,195,000 during the same period of …

WASHINGTON, Oct 16(ABC):  Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar on Sunday called for greater policy support from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) among other multilateral donors in Washington DC, US. It may be noted here that Dar is presently leading Pakistan’s delegation in the IMF-World Bank’s 2022 annual meetings being held in Washington DC. Other delegates include Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, federal …

KARACHI, Oct 16(ABC): The Pakistani rupee is expected to trade range-bound in the coming week, depending on the demand for greenback by importers as the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has started to clear pending letters of credit. The market will also keep an eye on any assistance from multilateral lenders in the form of finance pledges following the cataclysmic …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15 (ABC): The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has sympathized with Pakistan for the losses caused by the recent floods across the country and assured of fund’s support. The assurance was made by IMF’s Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department Jihad Azour in his meeting with Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Mohammad Ishaq Dar. They …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15 (ABC): The price of 24 karat per tola gold witnessed an increase of Rs 50 on Saturday and was sold at Rs 147,350 against its sale at Rs147,300 the previous day. The price of 10 gram 24 karat also increased by Rs 43 and was sold at Rs 126,329 against Rs 126,286; whereas that of 10 gram …

CANBERRA, Oct 15(ABC): Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced a plan to increase paid parental leave (PPL) entitlements up to six months. Albanese on Saturday revealed the policy in a speech to a Labor Party conference, declaring the move would boost productivity. Currently, parents are entitled to 18 weeks of parental leave paid at the same rate as the …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15 (ABC): Electric fans exports during the second month of fiscal year of 2022-23 increased by 31.96 percent as compared to the exports of the commodity during the corresponding period of last year. During the period from July 22-August 22, electric fans worth US$ 5,843,000 were exported as compared to the exports of US $ 4,428,000 during the …

London, Oct 15 (ABC): Britain’s new finance minister Saturday warned of looming tax hikes as he admitted to “mistakes” made in a disastrous budget that still threatens to bring down Prime Minister Liz Truss. “Truss fights for survival,” The Times newspaper headlined a day after she forced chancellor of the exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng to carry the can for market turmoil …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15 (ABC): The Pakistani Rupee continued upward trend against the US dollar during the week ending on October 14 as it gained Rs 1.96 or 0.89% to close at Rs 217.96 on Friday compared to the close of Rs 219.92 on the last working day of previous week. After hitting the all-time high of Rs 239.71 against the …

WASHINGTON, Oct 15(ABC): World Bank Group President David Malpass reaffirmed the bank’s ongoing commitment to support Pakistan for its urgent needs in health, food, shelter, and cash transfers, as well as accelerating the preparation of new operations to rebuild in a more resilient way. The WBG president met with Minister of Finance and Revenue Muhammad Ishaq Dar and Minister of Economic …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15(ABC): The European Union and Pakistan emphasizing on the importance of bilateral trade relations have noted that the Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) resulted in an increase in bilateral trade to EUR 12.2 billion in 2021. This was noted during the 12th European Union (EU) – Pakistan Joint Commission held in Islamabad on 5 October 2022 to …

KARACHI, Oct 15 (ABC):State Bank of Pakistan on Friday injected Rs 1390.250 billion into money market through its Open Market Operation. Rupees 1275.250 billion were as reverse repo purchase. Of these, Rs 377.950 billion were pumped for 7 days and Rs 675 billion for 63 days at 15.18 % rate of return accepted per annum. Rupees 115 billion were injected …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15 (ABC):Onion crop would be cultivated on 162,000 hectares in order to produce about 2.422 million tons of onion during Rabi season 2022-23, besides cultivating potatoes over 226,000 hectares to produce 6.029 million tons of potatoes for fulfilling the domestic requirements as well as to export. In Punjab, the potatoes would be cultivated on 221,000 hectares as output …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15(ABC): Canvas Footwear exports during the second month of fiscal year of 2022-23 grew up by 2,171.43 percent as compared to the exports of the commodity during the corresponding period of last year. During the period from July 22-August 22, Canvas footwear worth US$159 thousand were exported as compared to the exports of US $ 7 thousand during …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15(ABC): The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) based weekly inflation for the week ended on October 13 for the combined consumption group witnessed a decrease of 0.57 percent as compared to the previous week. The SPI for the week under review in the above-mentioned group was recorded at 204.55 points against 205.73 points registered in the previous week, according …

WASHINGTON, Oct 15(ABC): The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it is awaiting World Bank and UNDP’s assessment report and the economic devastation as a result of unprecedented flooding in the country to determine how it can help Pakistan. The global lender also shared that it would send a mission in November to Pakistan after the annual meetings as part of …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 15(ABC): The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has allowed an increase of Rs3.21 per unit in the power tariff, enabling Ex-WAPDA Discos (XWDISCOSs) to collect an additional Rs94 billion from consumers. According to a notification issued by NEPRA on Friday, the increase comes on account of quarterly Fuel Charges Adjustment (FCA) for the last quarter of the …

RIYADH, Oct 15(ABC): Saudi Arabia’s push for oil production cuts has placed a new strain on its stormy relationship with the United States, though analysts say any predictions of an all-out break are premature. The move last week by OPEC+ — composed of the Riyadh-led OPEC cartel and an additional group of 10 exporters headed by Russia — would reduce …

CAIRO, Oct 13(ABC): Saudi Arabia rejected as “not based on facts” statements criticising the kingdom after an OPEC decision last week to cut its oil production target despite US objections, saying it serves the interests of both consumers and producers. The OPEC decision was adopted through consensus, took into account the balance of supply and demand and was aimed at …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13 (ABC): Minister for Finance Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar held a productive meeting on Thursday with Deputy Managing Director of International Monetary Fund (IMF) Antoinette Sayeh. The minister extended gratitude to the IMF for an excellent support provided to Pakistan for macroeconomic stabilization and assured the government’s commitment to the implementation of the fund’s program, the Finance Ministry …

KARACHI, Oct 13(ABC): Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) continued to fall for the third week in a row, declining by 3.83%. On October 7, the foreign currency reserves held by the SBP were recorded at $7,596.9 million, down $303 million compared with $7,899.8 on September 30, data released by SBP showed on Thursday. …

MUZAFFAFARABAD, Oct 12 (ABC):The Bank of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (BAJK), in the first quarter of the current financial year, crossed the profit barrier of Rs 400 million.  This was revealed during the review meeting held here on Wednesday under the chair of BAJK President Khawar Saeed.  He said BAJK was recording a significant growth in deposits, assets and remittances …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13 (ABC):The overseas workers’ remittances posted a decline of 6.3 percent during first quarter (Jul-Sept) of fiscal year 2022-23 as the remittances fell from $8.2 billion in same period of last year to $7.7 billion in the period under review.  On year-on-year basis, the overseas workers’ remittances recorded an inflow of US$2.4 billion in September 2022, posting a …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13 (ABC):Minister for Commerce Syed Naveed Qamar said on Wednesday that the incumbent government was striving hard to  promote and develop regional trade, particularly with Central Asian states by introducing modern trade and business technologies, besides facilitating the business communities across the region. Addressing a three-day conference on “Peer Learning Initiatives, National Single Window Implementation and Management” organized …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13 (ABC):The sale of cars during the first quarter (Jul-Sept) of current fiscal year 2022-23, has dropped by 50.34 percent as compared to the same quarter of last year, a latest data released by Pakistan Automobile Manufacturing Association (PAMA) on Wednesday. According to the data, as many as 28,571 cars were sold during the period under review as …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13(ABC):President Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday underlined the need to substantially increase the volume of bilateral trade with Hungary from its existing level of $50 million to $150 million to help realize the full potential of bilateral trade, business and investment. The president said this while talking to Pakistan’s Ambassador-designate to Hungary, Asif Hussain Memon, who called on …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13 (ABC): Pakistan’s goods and services trade with Bangladesh witnessed surplus of over 33.70 percent during two months of current fiscal year (2022-23) as compared to the corresponding period of last year. The trade surplus during the period under review was recorded at $129.279 million against $96.688 million during same period of last year, showing 33.70 percent growth. …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 13 (ABC): Japanese ambassador to Pakistan Mr Mitsuhiro Wada on Wednesday said that Japan has been investing in Pakistan’s power sector and assured to further enhance investment in power sector of the country.The ambassador expressed these views in a meeting with Minister of Energy Engr. Khurram Dastgir Khan here Wednesday, said a press release. The ambassador appreciated the …

Oct 11(ABC): The Lahore High Court (LHC) has ordered the Punjab Government’s Ravi Development Authority (RUDA) from acting against the order of the Supreme Court. It was hearing public interest litigation filed against the actions of Ruda. Justice Shahid Kareem of the LHC heard the case on Tuesday. The applicant claimed that the authority is taking actions using the amendment …

SINGAPORE, Oct 11(ABC): Oil prices fell on Tuesday, extending nearly 2% losses in the previous session, as a stronger U.S. dollar and a flare-up in COVID-19 cases in China increased fears of slowing global demand. Brent crude futures fell 57 cents, or 0.6%, to $95.62 a barrel by 0031 GMT, after falling $1.73 in the previous session. U.S. West Texas …

KARACHI, Oct 11(ABC):Export of sports goods from Pakistan surged 71.66 percent during July-August 2022 over corresponding period of previous year and the country earned over Rs.14 billion by exporting footballs, gloves and other sports goods. According to trade data of the first two months of current financial year 2022-23 released by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), sports goods worth Rs …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 11(ABC): The Cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) Monday approved continuation of Regionally Competitive Electricity Tariff (RCET) for export oriented sectors during CFY 2022-23 and decided that electricity may be provided at Rs. 19.99 per kWh all inclusive to five export oriented sectors namely textile including jute, leather, surgical and sports goods across country from October 1, 2022 to …

WASHINGTON, Oct 11(ABC): The World Bank said on Monday it is launching a trust fund aimed at pooling public funds to provide grants for projects to reduce carbon emissions, including decommissioning coal-fired power plants. The Scaling Climate Action by Lowering Emissions (SCALE) fund will provide grants to developing countries as they deliver pre-agreed results in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, World …

ISLAMABAD, Oct 11(ABC): Federal Minister for Electricity Khurram Dastagir on Tuesday vowed that the rates of electricity would be reduced gradually. Addressing the press conference, Khurram Dastagir said that the electricity generated from the Thar Coal Power Project is a gift to the people. He also stated that Tharcoal will generate 1320 MW in December and 2640 MW by summer …

KARACHI, Oct 11(ABC): Gold rose on Tuesday, clawing back some lost ground after receding losses in two sessions in as clarity on the monetary policy stance helped the metal rebound. The price of yellow metal rose Rs1,750 per tola and Rs1,458 per 10 grams to settle at Rs144,850 and Rs124,143, data released by All Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association …

LIMASSOL, Oct 11(ABC): Moody’s Investors Service Tuesday downgraded the long-term deposit ratings to Caa1 from B3 of five Pakistani banks. The rating agency has also downgraded the five banks’ long-term foreign currency Counterparty Risk Ratings (CRRs) to Caa1 from B3. As part of the same rating action, Moody’s lowered the Baseline Credit Assessments (BCAs) of three banks to Caa1 from …

MULTAN, Oct 09 (ABC): Use of certified wheat seed can revolutionize golden grain’s production by enhancing eight to 10 maund per acre, however the country owned only 46 % certified seed. Wheat is cultivated over an area of 25 million acres in the country. However, there is only 1.1 million tonne certified wheat available with the government institutions and private …

BEIJING, Oct 9(ABC): China’s services activity in September contracted for the first time in four months, as COVID-19 restrictions dented already fragile demand and dimmed business confidence, a private-sector business survey showed on Saturday. The Caixin services purchasing managers’ index (PMI) fell to 49.3 from 55.0 in August as COVID containment measures disrupted supply and demand and restricted national travel. …

NEW YORK, Oct 9(ABC): The U.S. dollar appreciated in late trading on Friday as market participants digested the newly-released September U.S. jobs report.   The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, increased 0.48 percent to 112.7950. In late New York trading, the euro was down to 0.9737 U.S. dollars from 0.9798 dollars in the previous session, and …