WEB DESK, August 11(ABC): Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Thursday as traders anticipated more supply of crude entering the market coupled with weaker demand. Brent crude futures fell by 53 cents, or 0.5%, to $96.87 a barrel by 0005 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 61 cents, or 0.7%, to $91.32. U.S. crude oil …

WEB DESK, August 10(ABC): Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk sold $6.9 billion worth of shares in the electric vehicle maker, saying the funds could be used to finance a potential Twitter deal if he loses a legal battle with the social media platform. “In the (hopefully unlikely) event that Twitter forces this deal to close *and* some equity partners …

KARACHI, August 10(ABC): The Pakistani rupee continued to strengthen against the US dollar for the seventh consecutive session during intraday trade in the interbank market on Wednesday. The market remained closed for two days — Monday and Tuesday — on account of Ashura, but as it opened today (Wednesday), the rupee gained 2.51 against the dollar and was trading at …

LONDON, August 10(ABC): Oil rose over $1 a barrel on Tuesday, reversing an earlier decline, after Russia said oil exports to Europe via the southern leg of the Druzhba pipeline had been suspended since early August, reviving concern about tight supply. Russian pipeline monopoly Transneft said Ukraine had suspended oil flows via the pipeline leg because Western sanctions had prevented …

LONDON, August 8(ABC): Stock markets rose and the dollar retreated Monday as investors turned their attention to US inflation data later this week and weigh the prospect of further monetary policy tightening. The dollar was weaker as investors took profit on the strong gains notched up last week on speculation that the US Federal Reserve will announce a third successive …

ISLAMABAD, August 6(ABC): Gems exports during the twelve months of fiscal year of 2021-22 grew up by 14.10 percent as compared to the exports of the commodity during the corresponding period of last year. During the period from July-May 2021-22, Gems worth US $ 7,626 as compared to exports of $6,684 during the same period of last year. According to …

NEW YORK, August 6(ABC): Stock markets mostly fell Friday as a much stronger-than-expected US jobs report raised the prospect that the Federal Reserve will maintain its aggressive monetary policy to combat inflation. Official data published Friday showed the US economy added 528,000 positions, defying all expectations of a slowdown. Friday’s data also showed US wages jumped, which will add to …

BEIJING, August 6(ABC): The China Machinery Engineering Corp. (CMEC) successfully commissioned two gas turbines (405 MWs each) of the Punjab Thermal Power Ltd. (PTPL) power plant in the Jhang district. We have started simple-cycle commercial operations from the two RLNG-based gas turbines of total 810 megawatts capacity, PTPL said. Work on the 443 MWs steam turbine is also underway at …

BEIJING, August 6(ABC): China’s renewable energy solutions conglomerate Zonergy has installed four solar power plants at different buildings of BahawalVictoria Hospital in Bahawalpur district of Punjab province. The plants, having a total peak generation capacity of 325kW, have been installed by the Chinese company free of cost under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) agreement with the government of Punjab reported. …

LONDON/NEW YORK, August 5(ABC): Global oil prices dropped on Thursday to their lowest levels since before Russia’s February invasion of Ukraine as traders fretted over the possibility of an economic recession later this year that could torpedo energy demand. Benchmark Brent crude futures dropped more than 3% to $93.81 a barrel after touching a mid-session low of $93.20, the lowest …

ISLAMABAD, August 4(ABC): Bamboo is an effective carbon sink being promoted by China as a unique solution to climate change. Adopting and implementing Chinese strategies in Pakistan are easier than following western and European solutions, says a senior official from Pakistan’s Ministry of Climate Change. While talking to China Economic Net he said, “China has successfully worked on its forestation …

ISLAMABAD, August 3 (ABC): Complete transformation of the energy sector shifting from fossil fuel to clean energy, mainly solar, will achieve miracles in the country, Gwadar Pro reported on Wednesday quoting an article by Dr. Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan, Director Center for South Asia & International Studies (CSAIS). It says, the rapidly changing nature of socio-economic partnerships, conflicting realities of geopolitics …

BEIJING, August 4(ABC): “Pakistan has huge potential to become self-sufficient in the tea sector. If we plant tea on an additional 2,000 hectares of land offered by the government and invested by private companies, we can meet 95% of our national demand”, said Dr Abdul Waheed, Director of National Tea and High Value Crop Research Institute, PARC. “In collaboration with …

WEB DESK, August 4(ABC): Pakistani farmer Sajid Ali wades glumly through his flooded cotton field after days of torrential monsoon rains let up, surveying the irreversible damage. “My crop is almost totally destroyed, all six acres of it. There is no hope left, because even now the fields are covered in four feet of water,” he said from Masoo Burburi, …

KARACHI, August 4(ABC): The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday said it has started a crackdown on exchange companies (ECs) in the light of findings from ongoing inspections and mystery shopping. In a statement, the central bank stated that due to recent volatility in the exchange rate and the difference between the interbank rate and the rate offered by …

HONG KONG, August 4(ABC): Asian markets on Thursday tracked a Wall Street rally fuelled by healthy economic and earnings data, while there was some relief that Nancy Pelosi’s Taiwan trip did not elicit a harsher response from China despite grave warnings from Beijing. Oil managed to clock up some gains following another sell-off that came on the back of fresh …

WEB DESK, August 4(ABC): Oil prices rose on Thursday as supply concerns triggered a rebound from multi-month lows plumbed in the previous session after U.S. data signalled weak fuel demand. Brent crude futures rose 42 cents, or 0.4%, at $97.20 a barrel by 0250 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures was last up 49 cents, a 0.5% gain, …

SINGAPORE, August 4(ABC): Dubai-based trader Coral Energy has become the top fuel oil supplier to Pakistan in recent months after winning a slew of import tenders floated by state-run Pakistan State Oil (PSO), data compiled showed. Coral Energy won tenders to sell eight fuel oil cargoes to PSO during April-August, said a spokesman for Pakistan’s energy ministry, as the country’s …

KARACHI, August 4(ABC): Gold fell sharply on Wednesday as some investors unwound safe-haven positions as the precious commodity surrendered hefty gains to trade below Rs150,000 per tola as a rupee rally and crude oil drop triggered heavy profit-taking in the precious metal. Gold slides beneath key technical levels around Rs145,000 per tola accelerated the decline as investors liquidated some long …

ISLAMABAD, August 4(ABC): During the first month of fiscal year 2022-23, Pakistan’s exports shrank near a quarter over the previous month and 5.2% over the corresponding month of the last fiscal year, data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed Tuesday. Similarly, according to The News, imports also plunged by 38.3% over the previous month and 12.8% over the same …

ISLAMABAD, August 3(ABC): During the first month of fiscal year 2022-23, Pakistan’s exports shrank near a quarter over the previous month and 5.2% over the corresponding month of the last fiscal year, data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed Tuesday. Similarly, according to report, imports also plunged by 38.3% over the previous month and 12.8% over the same …

ISLAMABAD, August 2(ABC): As a major step towards solving the drinking water problem in Gwadar, construction of a 1.2 gallon per day (MGD) desalination plant in Gwadar Free Zone has commenced, reported on Tuesday quoting China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC). “Construction of 1.2 MGD desalination plant in Gwadar Free Zone commenced with full vigor; upon completion, it will assuage …

ISLAMABAD, July 2(ABC): Consecutive increases in the US Fed interest rates have produced havocs in the macro-economy of Pakistan. It badly needs economic stimulation, support and inflows of FDIs to consolidate its draining foreign reserves, says a report on Tuesday. The report contributed by Dr Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan, Director of the Center for South Asia & International Studies (CSAIS) Islamabad, …

ISLAMABAD, August 2(ABC): The imports of agriculture machinery and implements into the country during financial year ended on June 30,2022 witnessed about 18.32 percent increase as against the imports of the corresponding period of last year. During the period from July-June 2021-22, agriculture machinery and implements valuing $112.025 million as against the imports of $84.679 million of same period last …

ISLAMABAD, August 2(ABC): The KSE 100-index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed bullish trend on Tuesday, gaining 115.65 points, a positive change of 0.29 percent, closing at 40,191.61 points against 40,075.96 points on the last working day. A total of 217,504,902 shares were traded during the day compared to the trade of 110,422,594 shares the previous day, whereas the …

KARACHI: Gold prices were subdued on Wednesday in choppy trade as a rupee appreciation and the prospect the central bank could raise interest rates after record high inflation kept investors on edge. The price of gold — considered a safe haven — plummeted by Rs3,500 per tola and Rs3,001 per 10 grams to settle at Rs154,900 and Rs131,945 in the …

LONDON, August 2(ABC): Oil prices dropped sharply on Tuesday as weak manufacturing data from China and Europe weighed on the demand outlook while investors braced for this week’s meeting of officials from OPEC and other top crude producers on supply. Brent crude futures were down $3.77, or 3.6%, at $100.20 a barrel by 1319 GMT, having fallen to a session …

ISLAMABAD, August 1(ABC): Chinese companies Jinko Solar and JA Solar, together with another company, will provide photovoltaic cells/panels and other related equipment for the establishment of a solar photovoltaic power plant with an installed capacity of 1.931-megawatt peak (MWp) in Punjab, reported on Monday. The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) on July 29 granted a generation license to GSOLAR …

SEOUL, August 1(ABC): South Korea’s global automotive sale marked the first rebound in five months last month due to the improved supply of semiconductors used to make cars, industry data showed on Monday. Five domestic automakers, Hyundai, Kia, GM Korea, Renault Samsung and Ssangyong, sold 637,393 units in the global market in July, up 7.2 percent from a year earlier. …

ISLAMABAD, August 1(ABC): The signing ceremony for the project named “Regional Infrastructure Fund – II for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for Resilient Resource Management in Cities (RRMiC)” was held between both government of Pakistan and Federal Republic of Germany in the Ministry of Economic Affairs on Monday. According to the press release, Mian Asad Hayaud Din, Secretary Ministry of Economic Affairs, and …

MUMBAI, August 1(ABC): Asia’s richest men made multi-billion-dollar bets on the future of Indian telecommunications in the country’s 5G auction Monday, but nearly 30 percent of the available spectrum went unsold. Narendra Modi’s government plans to roll out 5G networks offering up to 10 times the speed of 4G to its 1.4 billion population before the end of the year. …

KARACHI, August 1(ABC): Gold prices slipped on Monday as the government’s stance on economic growth dimmed the metal’s appeal, with additional pressure from a rebound in local currency. Data released by the All Sindh Saraf and Jewellers Association (ASSJA) showed that the price of gold, considered a safe haven, plunged by Rs2,200 per tola and Rs1,886 per 10 grams to …

HONG KONG, August 1(ABC): Asian markets were mixed Monday and oil fell as investors assessed data showing further weakness in China’s economy and comments from Federal Reserve officials showing it was wedded to its campaign of interest rate hikes to fight inflation. A strong set of earnings from Wall Street titans Amazon and Apple helped US markets end last week …

SINGAPORE, August 1(ABC): Oil prices dropped on Monday, as weak manufacturing data from China and Japan for July weighed on the outlook for demand, while investors braced for this week’s meeting of officials from OPEC and other top producers on supply adjustments. Brent crude futures were down 82 cents, or 0.8%, at $103.15 a barrel at 0608 GMT. U.S. West …

ISLAMABAD, July 31(ABC): Foreign investors, including Chinese, Kuwaiti and German companies have called upon the Pakistan federal government to issue notifications of the tariffs of as many as 11 wind and solar energy projects with a total capacity of more than 600 megawatts of clean and cheaper electricity, reported on Sunday. The tariffs of these projects have been duly approved …

RIYADH, July 31(ABC): Saudi Arabia’s year-on-year economic growth hit nearly 12 percent for the second quarter, led by a surging oil sector, the government’s statistics agency said Sunday. The Middle East’s largest economy has benefited from a spike in oil prices triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and has largely resisted appeals from Western countries to raise output in order …

ISLAMABAD, July 31(ABC): The rate of inflation in the country in the last week reached record high of 37.6 percent amid higher food and fuel costs even as the nation closes in on an International Monetary Fund bailout. The Weekly Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the Combined Group increased by 3.68% during the week ended Jul 28, 2022 while the …

NEW YORK, July 31(ABC):  Central banks and markets may have dropped the narrative that inflation is “transitory,” but there is a strong chance that current spikes in prices are temporary and will soon begin to trend downward, economists and former central bank policymakers told the Reuters Global Markets Forum (GMF). “I’ll confess I’m still in team transitory,” said the Bank …

KARACHI, July 30(ABC): Amid a dollar shortage and concerns over a delay in an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout programme, the Pakistani rupee witnessed its worst month since 1972, reported Saturday. The local currency depreciated nearly Rs34.5, or more than 14%, against the US dollar in July — the biggest monthly drop in history on possible default jitters as foreign currency …

COLOMBO, July 29(ABC): The World Bank said Friday it would not offer new funding to Sri Lanka unless the bankrupt island nation carried out “deep structural reforms” to stabilise its crashing economy. Sri Lanka has suffered an unprecedented downturn with its 22 million people enduring months of food and fuel shortages, rolling blackouts and rampant inflation. The South Asian nation …