Category: Business

ISLAMABAD: Finance Adviser Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh on Thursday said that another Rs2-3 billion sales tax refunds will be issued to exporters in the next couple of days. The adviser said this in a meeting with a group of leading businessmen from various export contributing nearly $2bn exports to review progress on the issues pertaining […]

ISLAMABAD: No allocations would be made in the next budget for unapproved projects and efforts are in progress to secure a $9 billion Chinese loan for Main Railway Line (ML-1) at around two per cent interest, a Senate committee was told on Thursday. At a meeting of the panel, federal Minister for Planning, Development & […]

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved an emergency loan of $1 billion for Pakistan to provide immediate support to the country’s finances and help strengthen a slumping economy, according to a press release issued on Friday. The quick dispersing loan is part of a multi-donor economic reform programme spearheaded by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to […]

Major oil producers Saudi Arabia and Russia will seek approval for deeper output cuts from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and allies on Friday in an attempt to support prices and avoid a new oil glut. The group combining over 20 producers is considering an extra 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) in […]

KARACHI: Moody’s Investors Service on Thursday changed the outlook of five leading banks from ‘negative’ to ‘stable’ and affirmed their existing B3 long-term local currency deposit ratings. The banks include Allied Bank Ltd (ABL), Habib Bank Ltd (HBL), MCB Bank Ltd, National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and United Bank Ltd (UBL), according to an announcement […]

ISLAMABAD: Finance Adviser Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh on Wednesday said the government was committed to increasing production capacity of microfinance sector to grab maximum benefits out of minimum resources. Addressing a two-day microfinance conference here, the adviser said that stable economy was pivotal for promotion of the sector, which has been made possible due to […]

KARACHI: Domestic cement sales during 5MFY20 rose by three per cent to 16.854 million tonnes while exports grew by 21.5pc to 3.608m tonnes. As a result, the overall cement despatches grew by 5.76pc to 20.462m tonnes. On the other hand, in November, domestic sales rose by 5.11pc to 3.538m tonnes while exports swelled by 44pc […]

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to sell its precious unutilised state properties at the Dubai Expo to attract foreign and Pakistani investors to the country and the funds generated through the exercise will be spent on public welfare schemes related to education, health, food and housing. It was decided at a meeting on abandoned […]

ISLAMABAD: Despite around 13 per cent decline in consumption, the federal government collected about 18pc higher taxes on oil and gas products during first quarter (July-September) of this fiscal year mainly because of higher rates. Total revenue collection from oil and gas sector in the first quarter amounted to about Rs186 billion, compared to about […]

ISLAMABAD: Inflation rose to 12.7 per cent year-on-year, the highest level in nine years mainly driven by an increase in prices of food items, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported on Wednesday. Inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), edged up by 1.3pc over the previous month after the PBS revised its calculation […]