QUETTA, Jun 12 (ABC): The test flight from new Gwadar International Airport would be started from December this year as the construction work on site has been expedited, an official of Gwadar Development Authority said. The new $246m greenfield Gwadar International Airport (NGIA) being built at an area of 4,300 acres would be made operational before the deadline which was …

KARACHI, June 12(ABC): In view of the high dollar demand for import payments ahead of fiscal year-end, traders say that the local currency is expected to remain on the back foot in the next week. The local currency was volatile, having swung between 200.06 to a new record low of 202.83 per dollar during the outgoing week. It closed at …

TEHRAN, June 12(ABC): Iran and Venezuela signed a 20-year cooperation plan in Tehran as the two countries, among the world’s top oil producers, grapple with US sanctions that are crippling their exports. The signing ceremony, carried by Iranian state TV, was overseen by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro and took place at the Saadabad Palace …

KARACHI, June 12(ABC): The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has extended the last date for exchanging old banknotes of Rs10, 50, 100 and 1,000 till December 31, 2022. The central bank extended the last for exchanging old banknotes of Rs10, 50, 100 and 1000 for one year. The people can exchange the old banknotes from any of the SBP offices …

WEB DESK, June 12(ABC): The price of US gasoline averaged more than $5 a gallon for the first time on Saturday, data from the AAA showed, extending a surge in fuel costs that is driving rising inflation. The national average price for regular unleaded gas rose to $5.004 a gallon on June 11 from $4.986 a day earlier, AAA data …

ISLAMABAD, June 11(ABC): The government has allocated Rs 600 million for four ongoing and new schemes of the Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Division for the fiscal year 2022-23 under the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP). The budgetary allocation included Rs 319.612 million for one ongoing project and Rs 280.388 million for three new schemes, according to a budgetary document …

ISLAMABAD, June 11(ABC): The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors on Friday approved $300 million in financing to support Pakistan in upgrading rural roads to provide safe and reliable access to schools, health facilities and markets in the most vulnerable districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rural Accessibility Project (KPRAP) will provide safe and affordable transportation to …

HONG KONG, June 11(ABC): Markets extended a global sell-off Friday after the European Central Bank laid the groundwork to join others in a programme of interest rate hikes, while attention turns to the release of key US inflation data. After a largely positive start to the week, Asian investors tracked their US and European colleagues in selling up as they …

ISLAMABAD, June 11(ABC): Government on Friday has increased income tax threshold (per year) from Rs600,000 to Rs1.2 million. Finance Minister Miftah Ismail has unveiled the federal budget with a total outlay of Rs9.5 trillion in the National Assembly. The proposal about income tax effectively means there will be no income tax on individuals earning up to Rs100,000 a month. Major …

WASHINGTON, June 11(ABC): US consumer prices accelerated in May as gasoline prices hit a record high and the cost of food soared, leading to the largest annual increase in nearly 40-1/2 years, suggesting that the Federal Reserve could continue with its 50 basis points interest rate hikes through September to combat inflation. The faster-than-expected increase in inflation last month reported …

SINGAPORE: Oil prices slipped on Friday but remained within touching distance of three-month highs as fears over new COVID-19 lockdown measures in Shanghai outweighed solid demand for fuels in the United States, the world’s top consumer. Brent crude futures for August were down 77 cents, or 0.6%, at $122.30 a barrel as of 0448 GMT after a 0.4% decline the …

KARACHI, June 10(ABC): Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves continued the downtrend as the total amount held by the country dropped to $15.2 billion, the latest data from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed Thursday. The total liquid foreign reserves held by the country stood at $15,176.5 million as of June 3, after the reserves declined by $594.9 million or 3.77%, compared …

LIMASSOL, June 09(ABC): Moody’s Investors Service on Thursday affirmed the B3 long-term deposit ratings of five Pakistani banks. As part of the same rating action, Moody’s has changed the outlook on the banks’ long-term deposit ratings to negative from stable. The rating agency has also downgraded the long-term foreign currency Counterparty Risk Ratings of three of these five banks to …

WASHINGTON, June 09(ABC): The World Bank slashed its growth estimate for the global economy to 2.9 percent, 1.2 percentage points below the January forecast, due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine which has caused a severe downturn. “The world economy is expected to experience its sharpest deceleration following an initial recovery from global recession in more than 80 years,” the …

ISLAMABAD, June 09(ABC): The country’s economic growth rate has reached 6% against the target of 4.8%. According to the outlines of the National Economic survey  the economic growth was higher than the target while the inflation exceeded the target of 8%. The growth rate of inflation is more than 13% and the growth rate in agriculture was 4.4% while in …

HONG KONG, June 09(ABC): Asian markets fell Thursday as a rally in oil ramped up inflation fears, with top officials warning of more pain to come as the Ukraine war continues to push prices up and put further pressure on the global economy. Buyers on Wall Street were in retreat again after data showed US crude and gasoline stockpiles sank, …

NEW YORK, June 09(ABC): Oil prices jumped over 2% to a 13-week high on Wednesday as U.S. demand for gasoline keeps rising despite record pump prices, while expectations that China’s oil demand will increase faced growing supply concerns in several countries, including Iran. Iran said it was removing two International Atomic Energy Agency surveillance cameras at a uranium enrichment facility …

ISLAMABAD, June 09(ABC): The incumbent coalition government is all set to present its first “pro-people, business-friendly and progressive” budget for the fiscal year 2022-23 in the Parliament on June 10 (Friday), with a special focus on fiscal consolidation to contain the budget deficit. The budget would be presented by Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Miftah Ismail. The budget has …

ISLAMABAD, June 08(ABC): The coalition government, which came into power just months ago, may unveil over Rs9 trillion budget. Sources privy with the development, said that a major chunk of the new budget will be spent only on debt servicing of Rs3523 billion and Rs1586 billion will be allocated for defense. The finance ministry will have to borrow over Rs4 …

LAHORE, June 08(ABC): Punjab government on Tuesday prepared first draft of development budget in which it was proposed to allocate Rs640 billion in the development budget. According to the details, it has been recommended to allocate up to 35% of the budget for South Punjab and it was also proposed to start 13 mega development projects in Punjab while development …

ISLAMABAD, June 08(ABC): Minister for Planning and Development, Ahsan Iqbal Tuesday said that the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has approved Rs 250 billion Chashma Right Bank Canal (lift cum gravity), and referred with recommendation to the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (ECNEC) for further approval. Addressing a press conference, the minister said, the project that was lingering on …

ISLAMABAD, June 08(ABC): The price of 24 karat per tola gold witnessed an increase of Rs 12,50 per tola and was sold at Rs 143,250 on Tuesday against its sale at Rs 142,000 the previous day in the local market. The price of 10 gram 24 karat and 22 karat gold also increased by Rs.1072 and was sold at Rs.122,814 …

HONG KONG, June08(ABC): Asian markets rallied Wednesday, building on a hearty performance on Wall Street and helped by the reopening in China, though analysts continue to warn of near-term volatility caused by surging inflation, rising interest rates and the Ukraine war. Equities have enjoyed some respite in recent weeks from a painful sell-off caused by central bank monetary tightening — …

LAHORE, June 07(ABC): Newly appointed Trade Officers of Pakistan have sought assistance and cooperation from the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) in upsurging textile exports of the country and exploring investment potential in the textile sector. A 14-member delegation of officers selected from different occupational groups for posting in Pakistani missions abroad as Consul Generals, Ministers, Consulars and attachés …

ISLAMABAD, June 07(ABC): Australia’s central bank raised interest rates more than expected Tuesday and warned of more increases as officials try to rein in “significantly” high inflation. Governor Philip Lowe said the Reserve Bank’s main lending rate would go up half a percentage point to 0.85 percent, surprising analysts who had tipped a quarter point lift. He also said “extraordinary” …

CALIFORNIA, June 07(ABC): Elon Musk warned Twitter Inc that he might walk away from his $44 billion deal to acquire the social media company if it fails to provide the data on spam and fake accounts that he seeks. This was not the first time Musk had suggested publicly his acquisition of Twitter may not happen. But the warning, delivered …

LONDON, June 07(ABC): Oil prices were stable on Tuesday as the market balanced risk sentiment with supply concerns and the prospect of higher demand as China relaxes its COVID curbs. Brent crude futures were down 38 cents, or 0.3%, at $119.13 barrel at 09:26 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 25 cents, or 0.2%, at $118.25 …

SINGAPORE, June 07(ABC): Oil futures jumped on Monday, with Brent rising above $120 a barrel after Saudi Arabia hiked prices for its crude sales in July, signalling tight supply even after OPEC+ agreed to accelerate output increases over the next two months. Brent crude was up 91 cents, or 0.8%, at $120.63 a barrel at 0343 GMT after touching an …

HONG KONG, June 07(ABC): Asian markets struggled Tuesday on long-running worries over surging inflation and rising interest rates, which overshadowed hopes that China would ease off its regulatory drive against the country’s beleaguered tech giants. A spike in US Treasury yields took the wind out of the sales for Wall Street, with focus now on the release of inflation data …

KARACHI, June 07(ABC): The bulls staged a comeback at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday following a bloodbath last week as the benchmark KSE-100 began the week with a gain of over 250 points. Initially, the positivity came from the cement sector as prices in the south region have increased by Rs25 per bag (effective from June 6, 2022) …

ISLAMABAD, June 06(ABC): Pakistan has accomplished all 27 targets of Financial Action Task Force (FATF). According to sources, the name of Pakistan will likely come in white list from grey list. The meeting of FATF will be held in Berlin from 13 June to 17 June. The delegation from Pakistan will go to Berlin to attend meeting. Minister of Foreign …

ISLAMABAD, June 06(ABC): Federal Government is considering a proposal to increase tax on income made through social media platforms. According to details, International Monetary Fund (IMF) has placed tough conditions for resumption of its program and has asked government to reduce income tax credits and allowances. In view of conditions of the international lender, authorities are considering proposal to hike …

KARACHI, June 07(ABC): The Pakistani rupee plunged to 200.06 against the US dollar in the interbank market as concerns regarding the upcoming budget 2022-23 and revival of the multibillion-dollar International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme fueled a downtrend. According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the local currency shed Rs2.14, or 1.07%, against the greenback on Monday. The last time …

KARACHI, June 05(ABC): The Pakistani rupee is expected to remain stable during the next week amid improved dollar liquidity from exporters, say traders. Investors, however, are likely to remain somewhat cautious, seeking more clarity on the political front and ahead of the next fiscal year budget, traders said,  reported. The local unit consolidated its gains and rose to 197.59 against the …

WASHINGTON, June 05(ABC): The United States and European Union will announce a joint effort to avert a “subsidy race” as they scramble to boost production of scarce semiconductor chips, a senior Biden administration official said. The move will be unveiled at the second meeting of the US-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC), taking place on Sunday and Monday in Paris. …

SEOUL, June 05(ABC): Samsung Group will invest 450 trillion won ($356 billion) in the next five years to accelerate growth in semiconductors, biopharmaceutical and other next-generation technologies, Samsung Electronics said. South Korea’s top conglomerate said on Tuesday the investments through 2026 are expected to help Samsung drive long-term growth in strategic areas such as the chip sector, while pledging aggressive …

SAN FRANCISCO, June 05(ABC): Tesla (TSLA.O) CEO Elon Musk has a “super bad feeling” about the economy and needs to cut about 10% of salaried staff at the electric carmaker, he said in emails seen by Reuters. A message sent to executives on Thursday laid out his concerns and told them to “pause all hiring worldwide.” The dire outlook came …

WEB DESK, June 05(ABC): More than 46,000 people reported losing over $1 billion in cryptocurrency scams since the start of 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said in a report. Nearly half the people who reported losing digital currencies in a scam said it started with an ad, post or a message on a social media platform, according to the …

BERLIN, June 05(ABC): German carmaker Mercedes-Benz is recalling nearly one million older vehicles worldwide due to a potential problem with the braking system, the federal transport authority (KBA) said. The KBA said in a statement dated June 1 and reported late Saturday in German media that the recall affected cars built between 2004 and 2015, of the SUV series ML …

WEB DESK, June 05(ABC): The Gaming Spotlight 2022 report has revealed that mobile gaming represents 61% of the overall gaming market, which is set to hit $222 billion in 2022. Mobile gaming is set to surpass $136 billion in 2022 — growing 1.7x faster than the gaming market overall. Globally, users downloaded 45% more mobile games per week in Q1 …