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
The cost of living has gone up significantly during the first two days of the current interim government as the prices of sugar and steel bar have witnessed sharp spikes. Rising transportation cost due to a jump of Rs20 per litre in diesel rate, the rupee’s depreciation against the dollar and hoarding, have all combined to torment an already hard-pressed consumer. According to sugar dealers,
Profit-taking dominated trading on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday. Topline Securities said the shares market commenced the day on a positive note and hit an intraday high of 49 points. However, investors soon chose to book their gains in energy and fertiliser stocks. Consequently, the KSE-100 index erased its morning gains and slid into the negative territory to close on the
I HATE to be the bearer of bad news all the time. But circumstances don’t permit otherwise. In the last monetary policy statement of July 31, the State Bank said “inflation is likely to remain on downward path over the next 12 months”. But it is difficult to see how this will happen. There are a couple of reasons to believe why inflation may have peaked. First is what they call the “base effect