Pakistan should not depend on foreign institutions for assessment of its budget. An Independent Fiscal Council with statutory authority will provide parliament with its own expert voice, independent of the executive’s fiscal claims. photo: file ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s fiscal strategy and productivity landscape have been marred by years of perpetual firefighting. Beyond the International Monetary Fund’s…
An Israeli airstrike targeted a petrochemical firm in Mahshahr, Iran on Monday, causing partial damage to the industrial complex, according to Iranian officials. According to the Mehr News Agency, Valiollah Hayati, deputy governor for security affairs in Khuzestan province, told reporters: “A few minutes ago, the Karun Mahshahr Petrochemical Company was attacked by the Zionist…
Party preparing to expand its organisational and electoral footprint in Punjab provincial capital LAHORE: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Lahore President Faisal Mir on Sunday announced that the party would hold a major public rally at Minar-e-Pakistan on July 25 to mark the birthday of President Asif Ali Zardari, while also unveiling plans to contest upcoming…
Globally competitive industry cannot be developed behind walls, without assuming additional risk If Pakistan wants to build globally competitive cars and export them, it must lower its protectionist walls, access lower cost parts, and frictionlessly integrate into GVCs. photo: file ISLAMABAD: In the 1990s, two new auto assemblers in Pakistan, Toyota and Honda, joined Suzuki,…
. PESHAWAR: In a significant step aimed at improving travel facilities for passengers, Pakistan Railways has launched the second upgraded rake of the Awam Express service from Peshawar to Karachi. The train was formally flagged off by Divisional Superintendent (DS) Peshawar, Imran Hayat, along with divisional railway officials on Sunday. Passengers traveling on the Awam…
. Budgets in Pakistan have for years been read as ledgers of disappointment. The numbers came out, the cynics added them up, and the verdict was usually returned before the Finance Minister had finished his speech. The Federal Budget 2026-27, scheduled for approval by 1st July, deserves a different kind of reading. It is not…
. RAWALPINDI: Security forces killed 27 terrorists during a series of intelligence-based operations (IBOs) in the general area of Miran Shah, North Waziristan district, the military’s media wing said on Sunday. According to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the operations were conducted as part of ongoing efforts against terrorists. During the…
. ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi delivered a “special letter” on behalf of the country’s civil and military leadership addressed to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei in Tehran, amid Islamabad’s ongoing diplomatic efforts to help break the deadlock between the United States and Iran, officials and Iranian media said on Sunday. Naqvi, who arrived…
Over 20 sustain injuries as armed members of banned JAAC open fire on security personnel RAWALAKOT: Four law enforcement agencies’ (LEA) personnel were martyred and over 20 were injured after elements allegedly associated with the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (Jaac) opened fire on them in the Rawalakot area of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK)…
WASHINGTON/TEHRAN: Iran fired missiles at Israel late on Sunday night, the first since a fragile truce went into effect in April, Iranian Revolutionary Guards confirmed. The Guards said that the missile attack on Israel was a “warning” after the Israeli strike on Beirut earlier in the day, threatening wider strikes in the event of new…