Textile and clothing exports contracted by 14.72 per cent year-on-year to $15.03 billion during the first 11 months of the outgoing fiscal year. The decline in production is mainly attributable to a surge in the cost of production and a liquidity crunch, according to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Monday. The export figures for May paint a bleak picture as they w
The government on Monday decided to hold formal negotiations with the UAE’s Abu Dhabi Ports (ADP) for the speedy transfer of the Container Terminal from Karachi Port Trust (KPT). This may be the first commercial transaction for the divestment of public sector assets to friendly countries under a recently enacted law – Inter-Governmental Commercial Transaction Act 2022 – through direct negotiati
The short-term Punjab budget for 2023-24 lacks basic information and some of the provisions made under various heads need clarification including the bloc allocation of Rs325 billion for development schemes and Rs70bn subsidy for the poor. “The budget document lacks details about the allocations made for various sectors. The budget has been distributed among sectors/departments in the form of b
With an eye on the upcoming elections, the Chief Minister Mir Abdul Qadoos Bizenjo-led Balochistan government on Monday presented a populist budget for the fiscal year 2023-24, envisaging an expansionary spending plan of Rs750.5 billion that carries a record development stimulus of Rs313.3bn in spite of a resource crunch. The budget presented by Finance Minister Zamaruk Khan Achakzai proposed t
The country posted a surplus of $255 million in May compared to a $1,506m deficit in the same month last year thus grossly reducing the current account deficit (CAD) in the outgoing fiscal year. A late-night despatch from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday showed the CAD narrowed by 80.58 per cent to just $2.943bn during July-May FY23 from $15.16bn in the same period of last fiscal year