Finance secretary says ‘government is in discussions with the IMF; thus, it cannot disclose these numbers’ ISLAMABAD: The government on Monday refused to share the cost of tax relief with the National Assembly (NA) standing finance committee, which will approve the new budget, but the committee chairperson said that the cost was around Rs360 billion….
State Bank of Pakistan. Photo: File The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 11.5%. This marks the fourth MPC meeting of 2026. The decision came after the central bank had raised the rate by 100 basis points in its previous…
Investor confidence surges as budget measures, Iran-US peace breakthrough push KSE-100 index to 175,746.63 points KARACHI: An “all is well” sentiment prevailed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday as market participants welcomed the government’s reform-oriented budget measures and responded positively to reports of a preliminary peace agreement between the United States and Iran….
Debt servicing consumes 69% of revenue while development spending stays compressed ISLAMABAD: The federal budget for FY 2026-27 arrives at a moment of relative macroeconomic calm, but not yet economic confidence. Pakistan has moved away from the crisis conditions of 2022-23: inflation has eased, reserves have improved, and the current account deficit has been tamed….
ISLAMABAD: As tensions around the Strait of Hormuz fuel inflation and energy insecurity, Pakistan is once again confronting a familiar challenge: how to shield its economy from imported energy shocks. “When petrol becomes expensive, everything becomes expensive,” said Jabbar Khan, a father of nine. According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), Pakistan’s headline inflation…
Pakistan's economic trajectory over the past several years has been closely linked to its engagement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Faced with recurring balance-of-payments crises, rising inflation, mounting external debt obligations and dwindling foreign exchange reserves, Pakistan once again turned to the IMF to restore macroeconomic stability and rebuild investor confidence. The current IMF-supported…
ISLAMABAD: The federal government has abolished the 18% sales tax on the shipping industry in the 2026-27 budget, a move hailed by Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry as a major boost for maritime and logistics sectors. Chaudhry said the removal of the tax met a longstanding demand from industry stakeholders and…
KARACHI: Despite witnessing sharp swings throughout the week and briefly slipping below the key 170,000-point level, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) gained 1.13% week-on-week to close at 172,400 points. It staged a strong recovery on Friday, adding 1.6% in a single session after reports that planned US strikes on Iran had been called off, boosting…
Businesses say they lack incentives to boost industrial growth, agriculture, employment KARACHI: The Pakistan Business Forum (PBF) has expressed concern over several key aspects of the federal budget 2026-27, stating that the budget falls short of delivering the bold and transformative measures required to accelerate industrial growth, enhance exports, revive agriculture, and generate employment opportunities….
BENGALURU: An Indian pollution regulator has alleged wastewater discharged from a Tata components factory for Apple’s iPhone has contaminated the groundwater for nearby farms and warned of a forced shutdown unless Tata gives a satisfactory explanation. India’s Tata Electronics is central to Apple’s push to diversify iPhone production beyond China and is the second-biggest supplier…