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Red Sea caution

The Houthi retaliation represents a danger to worldwide maritime transport. A resolute response is imperative for sustained global prosperity. To ensure the unimpeded passage of ships, particularly through vital chokepoints like the Strait of Malacca or the Panama Canal, addressing the recent surge of attacks in the Red Sea — crucial for access to the Suez Canal — stands as an urgent concern. T

The remittances crunch

The inflow of remittances to Pakistan has yet to show a satisfactory trajectory since January 2022. The monthly inflow of remittances for the first three quarters of 2023 was lower than both the previous year and 2021. The count of remittances from January to November 2023 was $23.96 billion, reflecting a decrease of $3.83bn compared to the corresponding period in 2022 and $4.6bn compared to 2021.

Stocks rally 698 points on rate cut hopes

Snapping the five-session losing streak, bulls returned with a bang as hopes enlivened for a cut in the interest rate in the upcoming monetary policy review this month, tossing the benchmark KSE-100 index above the 64,000-point level on Thursday. Topline Securities Ltd said investor optimism is fuelled by expectations of a positive outcome from the meeting with the International Monetary Fund (

Oil rises 3pc on ME tensions

Oil prices climbed about three per cent to a two-week high on Thursday after Iran seized an oil tanker off the coast of Oman, raising the prospect of escalating conflict in the Middle East. Brent futures rose $2.23, or 2.9pc, to $79.03 a barrel by 11:25am EST (1625 GMT), while, US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $2.34, or 3.35, to $73.71. That puts Brent on track for its highest close

Sugar sector earns record Rs22bn on price spike

The listed sugar sector’s earnings were up 78 per cent year-on-year to a record high of Rs22 billion in FY23 (Oct 2022 to Sept 2023) due to a rise in sugar prices that led to higher gross margins. Ethanol, which is a by-product of sugar, also experienced improved performance in FY23 due to favourable selling prices in the international market along with the rupee devaluation. Sunny Kumar of