News

Digitisation — the way forward

Digitisation can significantly boost the GDP growth rate and expand the size of the country’s economy. A report on Pakistan’s digital journey, Recommendations for Digital Transformation in Pakistan, argues that digitisation has the potential to add $60 billion to the economy by 2030 if the government creates a favourable investment climate for local and foreign investors to fill in the large gaps

Inflation myths of Ramazan

There is a popular belief that inflation rises during Ramazan, with authorities solely fixated on stocking up and artificial price hikes. Prices tend to escalate during Ramazan, with a general surge of 31.5 per cent in recent months, and several food items experiencing up to a 60pc increase in prices from their pre-Ramazan levels. While stocking up may be a contributing factor towards higher pr

SBP governor, secretaries to attend IMF-WB meetings

The 2023 spring meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) begin in the US capital on Monday to consider “uncertainties and risks weighing heavily” on the global economy. The April 10-16 meetings at the IMF and World Bank headquarters will also focus on the effects of climate change, which is threatening lives and livelihoods around the world. The meetings bri

Govt set to push shift from gas to electricity, energy-efficient buildings

The government plans to embark on a 10-year transition strategy to shift from gas to electricity in commercial, industrial and residential sectors, and push energy-efficient buildings under a Rs45 billion energy efficiency and conservation project, which envisages energy savings of over Rs500bn a year. The project was formally cleared by the Central Development Working Party a few days ago for

Stocks manage modest gains in cautious trade

Share prices hovered on the higher side on Wednesday following the less-than-expected hike of 100 basis points in the key interest rate that the Monetary Policy Committee announced a day earlier. Arif Habib Ltd said the interest rate increase of one percentage point surprised investors and boosted their confidence. The bourse continued to trade positively throughout the trading session, even th