Reacting to a major increase in petroleum prices by the interim government, business leaders on Wednesday warned that the decision will cause the closure of 50 per cent of industrial units and trigger mass unemployment. They said trade and industry, which are already struggling to survive the power tariff hikes of almost Rs10 per unit, cannot bear the increase of Rs17.50 and Rs20 per litre in t
The foreign exchange reserves of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) slightly increased by $12 million to $8.055 billion during the week ended on Aug 11 against the previous trend of frequent declines since the first week of July. The SBP reserves were $4.524bn on July 7, which jumped to $8.727bn after inflows from the IMF, Saudi Arabia and UAE. However, the forex holdings of the central bank s
Recent findings from the World Resource Institute’s (WRI) ‘Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas’ have shed light on a concerning global trend. According to the updated framework, Pakistan has been classified under the ‘high’ water stress category. This categorisation is part of a broader revelation that by 2050, an estimated $70 trillion in GDP, equivalent to 31 per cent of the global GDP, will be vulnera
The former PDM government left behind a massive fiscal deficit — the difference between income and expenditure — of 7.7 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) while concluding the fiscal year 2022-23 on June 30, significantly higher than its claim of 7pc, according to official accounts. Fiscal Operations Data, released by the Ministry of Finance on Thursday, put the overall fiscal deficit at
Terming the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) a ray of hope for Pakistan’s economic development, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar on Thursday said the government would ensure full use of the forum to carry forward the development agenda. Addressing a meeting in connection with the working of SIFC, PM Kakar said the government would focus on the development of different