HONG KONG, June 01(ABC): Asian markets fluctuated Tuesday as investors struggled to maintain a global rally, with inflation continuing to niggle owing to a pick-up in oil prices while a top Federal Reserve official pressed for a series of sharp interest rate hikes. With Wall Street closed for a holiday there were few catalysts to help extend the gains enjoyed …

PARIS, June 01(ABC):France’s economy shrank in the first quarter as households spent even less than previously thought due to rising inflation, the statistics agency said Tuesday, lowering an initial estimate of zero growth. Russia-Ukraine conflict has sent energy and food prices soaring worldwide, raising concerns that inflationary pressure could derail the economic recovery from the Covid pandemic. France’s worse-than-estimated performance …

BEIJING, June 01(ABC): China’s State Council issued a circular on Tuesday, urging the implementation of a package of detailed policy measures to further stabilize the economy. The package, which was announced at a State Council executive meeting last week, includes 33 measures covering fiscal and financial policies as well as policies on investment, consumption, food and energy security, industrial and …

ISLAMABAD, June 01(ABC): The Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said that Russia did not offer a 30% discount on oil and wheat, adding that the budget is likely to withdraw subsidies and increase taxes. Pakistan’s Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said on Tuesday that Islamabad has asked both Russia and Ukraine to sell it wheat, stressing that sanctions on Moscow mean it …

  ISLAMABAD, June 01(ABC): Prices of ghee and cooking oil have increased immensely at utility stores all over the country on Tuesday. The Utility Stores Corporation has issued a notification of the increase in the prices. As per the notification, the price of ghee has been increased up to Rs. 208 per kg and price of cooking oil of different …

  ISLAMABAD, June 01(ABC): The federal government Tuesday approved keeping the prices of petroleum products unchanged, a notification from the Ministry of Finance said. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed the ministry to maintain the price announced on May 27 — the day that the federal government made a massive price hike of Rs30 in petroleum products. “With a view …

KARACHI: Following the major hike in the prices of petroleum products by the government, hopes have risen for the revival of the IMF programme as analysts say that the Pakistani rupee is likely to start an upward drive against the US dollar in the next week. The rupee recovered lost ground and closed at 199.76 per dollar in the interbank …

DAVOS, May 29(ABC): Israel President Isaac Herzog has said that he had had an “amazing experience” while meeting a delegation of Pakistani expatriates living in the United States. The Israeli president was speaking at the World Economic Forum (WEF) — held in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday — about the Abraham Accords, a US-backed deal that led to the normalisation of Israel’s …

ISLAMABAD: After reports surfaced of the sanitary pads’ market being affected by the recent ban imposed on imported goods by the government, Miftah Ismail has clarified that there is “no ban on sanitary pads or diapers or the raw materials” used in their manufacture. However, Miftah rubbished the news, saying there is no restriction on importing industrial raw materials or …

BEIJING, May 29 (INP): Sino-Pak enhances it cooperation for mitigating Pakistan’s fertilizer crisis, China Economic Net (CEN) reported on Sunday. As per the report, in recent years, the sharp rise in fertilizer prices kept farmers in Pakistan unsettling. Data shows that the cultivated land area in Pakistan has increased by 2 million hectares in the past two years, and 2021 …

ISLAMABAD, May 29 (ABC): The first shipment of Pakistani mangoes of this season has arrived in Kunming, China, Gwadar Pro reported on Sunday. As per Adnan Hafeez, General Secretary of the Pakistan Chamber of Commerce in China (PCCIC) and Director of Imperial Ventures (Pvt), the first batch of Sindhri mangoes landed at the Kunming airport with a total volume of …

ISLAMABAD, May 29 (ABC): Supporting locally-owned small businesses has significant positive economic impacts—even before our world was struck with the COVID-19 pandemic. Meher Kashif  Younis, former senior Vice President Lahore chamber while talking to a delegation of young educated progressive women led by Ms Noora Ahmad from Sialkot here on Sunday said It’s important that we continue to support our …

ISLAMABAD, May 29(ABC): After removing subsidies from petroleum products, the government is likely to increase the system gas tariff by 40-50% in its continued bid to revive the $6 billion International Monetary (IMF) programme, expecting the revenue requirement determination for the fiscal year 2022-23 by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) in June,  reported Sunday, citing a senior energy …

ISLAMABAD, May 28(ABC): Pakistan is likely to get $2.5 billion from China after both sides reached an agreement on economic package. According to sources privy with the development, foreign exchange reserves will increase while pressure of foreign debt payments will reduced after Chinese funds are received. Sources further said that government is also in talks with China for economic package …

ISLAMABAD, May 28(ABC): The federal government has scrapped the import ban on certain items, other than cat and dog foods, the Ministry of  Commerce clarified Saturday. The government had on May 19 imposed a ban on the import of non-essential luxury items under an “emergency economic plan” to “save the country precious foreign exchange”. The move was widely hailed but …

MULTAN, May 28 (ABC):Farmers can move beyond existing low of 500-600 Maunds per acre average sugarcane yield by slightly modifying agronomic practices and better care. Sugarcane is Pakistan’s important cash crop that involved countless people in earning activity from farm to industry and market chain, says a release issued by agriculture department here Saturday. There is no dearth of growers …

LAHORE, May 28 (ABC): Pakistan Railways will likely increase the fares in wake of the recent hike in the fuel prices, sources said on Saturday. Sources privy to the development said the Pakistan Railways (PR) is bearing the loss of Rs20 million daily due to a rise in the price of diesel. The authorities have forwarded recommendations for the increase …

KARACHI, May 28(ABC): The increase in petroleum prices and hopes of the revival of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme led the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) to witness a rangebound session on Friday. The benchmark KSE-100 Index closed in the green with an increase in 319.74 points, or 0.75%, to close at 42,861.45 points. At least 527.67 million shares, with …

BEIJING, May 28 (ABC): China said on Friday that it would further facilitate foreign institutional investments in its bond market and coordinate the opening-up of the interbank and exchange bond markets. The country aims to increase the diversity of investors, while improving the liquidity and stability of its bond market, according to a statement jointly issued by the central bank …

BEIJING, May 28 (ABC):Compared with traditional crops, fig, as an emerging cash crop, can obviously play a greater role in promoting farmers’ income. “At present, a small-scale fig soil environmental improvement experiment has achieved remarkable results,” said Dr. Abdul Ghaffar Shar, Researcher of Yangling Fig Research Institute in China. His viewpoint was echoed by Eric Fang, Chairman of Yangling Fig …

ISLAMABAD, May 28(ABC): The price of 24 karat per tola gold witnessed a decrease of Rs 2,100 and was sold at Rs 141,200 on Friday against its sale at Rs 143,300 in the local market. The price of 10 gram 24 karat gold also decreased by Rs 1800 and was sold at Rs 121,056 compared to its sale at Rs 122,756 …

ISLAMABAD, May 28(ABC): The Sensitive price Indicator (SPI) based weekly inflation for the week ended on May 26 for the combined consumption group, witnessed a decrease of 0.26 percent as compared to the previous week. The SPI for the week under review in the above mentioned group was recorded at 174.62 points against 175.08 points registered in the previous week, …

ISLAMABAD, May 28(ABC): Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has reiterated Pakistan s firm resolve to strengthen Pak-Japan bilateral cooperation in diverse fields including trade, education, Information Technology, climate change, and infrastructure. Talking to ambassador of Japan to Pakistan Mitsuhiro Wada in Islamabad on Friday, he invited new Japanese companies to avail the business friendly opportunities and invest in Pakistan. The Prime …

ISLAMABAD, May 27 (ABC): The Ministry of Industries and Production on Friday issued the notification of raise in the prices of flour bag as Price of 20 kilograms flour bag has been increased to Rs. 180 while there has been an increase of Rs. 90 in the 10 kilograms flour bag at the utility stores. Buying ability of the people …

ISLAMABAD, May 27(ABC): The price of 24 karat per tola gold witnessed an increase of Rs 100 and was sold at Rs 143,300 on Thursday against its sale at Rs 143,200 in the local market. The price of 10 gram 24 karat gold also increased by Rs.85 and was sold at Rs.122,756 compared to its sale at Rs 122,771 whereas that …

ISLAMABAD, May 27(ABC): Government will be increasing electricity prices by Rs. 7 to meet the demands on International Monetary Fund (IMF). According to sources privy to the matter, the hike of Rs. 7 in electricity prices would include an increase in basic tariff and fuel adjustment charges. The hike in power tariff will be applicable from July 1. Moreover, the …

ISLAMABAD, May 27(ABC): The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has been asked to fetch Rs7.2 trillion in taxes for the upcoming budget by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with a target on personal income tax (PIT) and harmonisation of general sales tax (GST), reported Friday. A top official source confirmed the reports by saying that discussions are underway, with the …

ISLAMABAD, May 27(ABC): Finance Minister Miftah Ismail announced Thursday a massive hike in the price of petroleum products after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) emphasised abolishing the subsidies on commodities. In a press conference, the finance minister said the government has decided to hike the price of petrol, diesel, kerosene oil, and light diesel by Rs30, effectively from May 27. …

KARACHI, May 27(ABC): The US dollar on Friday plummeted by Rs3 against the Pakistani currency, sliding down to Rs199 in the interbank market. The downslide in the dollar’s value occurred after the government decided to remove petroleum subsidies in line with the conditions of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The subsidy removal meant the government imposed a major hike in …

ISLAMABAD, May 26(ABC): The KSE 100-index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) continued with bullish trend on Thursday, gaining 529.05 points, with a positive change of 1.26 percent, closing at 42,541.71 points against 42,012.66 points on the last working day. A total of 347,068,781 shares were traded during the day compared to the trade of 240,046,117 shares the previous day, …

KARACHI, May 26(ABC): Pakistan’s rupee hit a record low on Thursday of 202.50 in intraday trading against the US dollar, below the previous close of 201.92, after the failure of talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Pakistan and the IMF have failed to reach a staff-level agreement for the revival of the $6 billion programme as the Fund emphasised …

HONG KONG, May 26 (ABC): Asian markets were mixed Thursday as minutes indicating a less hawkish Fed were offset by China’s premier warning that the world’s number two economy was in some ways worse off now than during the early days of the pandemic. The wind was immediately taken out of traders’ sails as they digested Li Keqiang’s warning, which …

DOHA, May 26(ABC): The International Monetary Fund (IMF) late Wednesday delayed the revival of the stalled $6-billion programme under the External Financing Facility (EFF) for Pakistan. The revival was expected to bring stability to the financial markets, the fast-weakening Pakistani rupee, and the depleting foreign exchange reserves, as the government had pinned hopes on the programme’s resumption. Pakistan failed to …

KARACHI, May 25(ABC): The Pakistani rupee dropped to a historic low of Rs202 against the US dollar on Wednesday as an ongoing political crisis rocked confidence in the currency. The rupee has been declining for months, but the fall became precipitous in March when the then opposition parties tabled a no-confidence motion against Imran Khan that led to his ouster. …

TOKYO, May 25 (ABC): Tokyo stocks closed lower on Wednesday after US shares mostly retreated following a profit warning from the owner of Snapchat that shocked the tech sector. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index ended down 0.26 percent, or 70.34 points, at 26,677.80, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.09 percent, or 1.68 points, to 1,876.58. The tech sector was …

BEIJING, May 25 (ABC): “As for the automotive industry, Pakistan is about to usher in a golden age of development. Chinese brands including BAIC Motor, Changan Auto and SAIC Motor, have set up their own assembly plants in Pakistan. Other brands like GWM, BYD and Geely are likely to open plants in Pakistan too,” Philip Jian, Pakistan’s Honorary Investment Counsellor …