News

Big industry expands in August after 11 months

Large-scale manufacturing (LSM) registered year-on-year growth of 2.52 per cent in August, reversing the trend after 11 consecutive months of contraction, data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics showed on Monday. On month-on-month, it witnessed a growth of 8.44pc. This indicates a resurgence in industrial production, a development that followed the easing of opening letters of credit

Inflow of foreign loans surges in first quarter

Pakistan’s foreign assistance inflows rose by about 58 per cent in the first quarter of the current fiscal year. In its monthly report on Foreign Economic Assistance (FEA), the Economic Affairs Division (EAD) on Monday said against its annual target of $17.6bn, total FEA in the July-September quarter amounted to $3.527bn when compared to just $2.234bn of the same period last year, an increase o

No amnesty for non-customs paid vehicles: FBR

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has ruled out the existence of any proposed amnesty scheme targeting non-customs paid (NCP) vehicles, which comes at a time when dealers have been noticeably hiking prices across various categories over the past few weeks. “There is no such proposal under discussion or consideration in FBR”, the spokesperson Afaq Ahmed Qureshi told Dawn on Monday. The socia

Index rises to six-year high

The outgoing week saw the benchmark index crossing 49,000 points, which is the level last seen in June 2017. Arif Habib Ltd said the stock market maintained its bullish trend on the back of robust corporate results that exceeded participants’ expectations. A record-setting 27th consecutive session of the strengthening rupee against the dollar boosted investors’ confidence. Furthermore, Pakis

No hasty big moves, please

The rupee is on the rise. Cotton output is growing fast. Estimated wheat production is up 12 per cent compared to the last year. Car sales have started picking up. The stock market is doing well. Banks are making big profits. Fuel prices are on hold, although temporarily. Exports of agricultural and food items grew 37pc in July-September. Home remittances in September rose more than 5pc compared t