News

Finance ministry admits transparency gaps in key investment projects

A Ministry of Finance report has accepted that the absence of structured transparency in the Special Investment Facilitation Council's (SIFC) initiatives could undermine policy predictability and weaken the confidence of investors. In its 240-page Prime Minister's Economic Governance Reforms Agenda, the finance ministry committed to bringing transparency in the SIFC affairs, showed the report r

Asian stocks ease, dollar firms ahead of jobs report, ruling on tariffs

Asian stocks drifted lower and the dollar stood tall on Friday ahead of a crucial jobs report, while investors girded for a Supreme Court ruling on the legality of President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariff that jolted markets last year. Simmering geopolitical tensions across the globe boosted oil prices, as well as defence stocks, and will remain in traders mind as they weigh developments

Digital transformation unveiled: Zarea Ltd positioning for global commodities leadership

Zarea Limited has announced a comprehensive digital transformation, signaling a major shift in its business model and laying the foundation for a dominant role in the global commodities market. The company disclosed the initiative through a formal filing with the Pakistan Stock Exchange, describing the move as a complete re-engineering of its identity, technology, and operational capabilities.

Forex reserves rise by USD180m

Pakistan’s total liquid foreign exchange reserves showed a modest week-on-week improvement and rose by USD 180 million during the last week, mainly driven by an increase in the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) holdings. According to official data released by the SBP on Thursday, the country’s total liquid foreign reserves stood at USD 21.192 billion on January 2, 2026 compared with USD 21.012 bil

Delivering highest total returns in Asia-Pacific: Banks based in Pakistan account for 6 of top 10 positions: S&P

Smaller Pakistani banks posted some of the best total returns to investors across the Asia-Pacific region in 2025, buoyed by a strong rally in local equity markets and improving macroeconomic indicators, according to an analysis by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The S&P Global Market Intelligence in its report mentioned that the Bank of Punjab emerged as one of the top-performing banks in the