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IT minister warns of service disruptions

IT & Telecom Minister Syed Aminul Haque on Tuesday said that the limits set for letters of credit (LCs) facility for the telecom sector were insufficient. “Without much-needed tec­hnical parts there are fears of service disruptions in many areas,” Mr Haque warned while presiding over the 44th Policy Com­mittee meeting of the Universal Service Fund (USF). He said that limited permissions for

Senator seeks parliamentary probe into ‘economic downfall’

Concerns over the country’s financial deterioration echoed in the Senate on Tuesday, with a treasury lawmaker calling for a parliamentary probe into the causes of economic downfall over the past 10 years. The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Irfan Siddiqui suggested forming a committee comprising lawmakers to review the causes of economic downfall since 2013. In a wide-ran

Large-scale manufacturing shrinks for third month

Large-scale manufacturing (LSM) shrank 5.49 per cent in November 2022 over the same month last year, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday. The big industry production contracted for the third consecutive month of the current fiscal year sending fears of major layoffs, especially in the textile sector. The contraction in industrial output indicates that e

Oil prices extend gains on optimism over China’s recovery

Oil prices rose on Wednesday, extending the previous session’s gains, driven by optimism that the lifting of China’s strict Covid-19 curbs will lead to a recovery in fuel demand in the world’s top oil importer. Brent crude futures firmed 63 cents, or 0.73 per cent, to $86.55 a barrel by 0401 GMT, following a 1.7pc rally in the previous session. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures

Weakening rupee raises fears about economy

As the rupee continues to weaken faster than market expectations, doubts and fears are mounting over the country’s economic health, particularly its ability to pay the import bill for essential items in the coming weeks. The exchange rate has been primarily hit hard by a steep decline in the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves, which have shrunk to a near nine-year low of $4.34 billion.