The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) maintained its policy rate on Monday at 11 per cent, after many analysts cited inflation risks from rising global commodity prices amid Iran-Israel tensions. The central bank’s policy rate, after being slashed by 1,000bps from 22pc since June 2024 in seven intervals, was cut to 11pc last month. “The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decided to keep the policy r
While multinationals praised the State Bank’s decision to maintain the interest rate at 11 per cent, local businessmen on Monday expressed frustration over the delay in reducing the lending rate to single digits, in line with declining inflation. Overseas Investors Chambers of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) Secretary General M. Abdul Aleem said, “We fully support the prudent decision of the SBP
The PML-N government in Punjab on Monday proposed a Rs5.33 trillion annual budget for the fiscal year 2025-26, focusing primarily on large infrastructure schemes and freebies for the urban middle classes, especially the youth, as well as small industries and farmers to regain the political ground it had lost in its stronghold in the 2024 election. The budget features a record Rs1.24tr Annual De
The government is reevaluating the powers granted to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) officers to arrest suspected tax evaders and adding guardrails to prevent arbitrary detentions after concerns expressed by businesspeople and lawmakers over the blanket authority and its potential misuse. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday formed a committee to reexamine the matter and recommend stringen
Punjab on Monday presented Rs1.240 trillion Annual Development Plan for 2025-26, the largest-ever in its history and 43 per cent more than the previous year’s ADP, marking “a shift towards transformational planning, placing equity, innovation and climate resilience at the heart of development”. The government claims that the ADP is not just a funding plan rather a blueprint for shared prosperit