With food inflation hitting up to 42 per cent in urban areas, a large number of consumers have opted for slightly cheap but ‘high quality’ Iranian ‘smuggled’ products, such as oil and cheese, readily available in Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Several shops in twin cities have dedicated racks for Iranian goods, but the best place to bargain for these items, mainly packaged food, is the weekly bazaar
The repatriation of dollars by foreign companies plunged 88 per cent during the first 8 months of the current fiscal year reflecting low profits and stringent restrictions on outflows from the country. Data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday did show that the government policy of curbing dollar outflows severely impacted the foreign direct investment (FDI) which dipped by 40
The World Bank on Monday warned that the global economy’s “speed limit” — the maximum long-term rate at which it can grow without sparking inflation — is set to slump to a three-decade low by 2030 and advocated an ambitious policy push by national economies to boost productivity and the labour supply, ramp up investment and trade, and harness the potential of the services sector. The report, “F
The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Monday approved about Rs72 billion financing facility for payment of the Balochistan government’s obligations in the Reko Diq Project dispute settlement. The meeting presided over by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, however, deferred proposals for increasing the minimum prices of about 177 medicines because of poor defence by the Drug Regul
China spent $240 billion bailing out 22 developing countries between 2008 and 2021, with the amount soaring in recent years as more have struggled to repay loans spent building “Belt & Road” infrastructure, according to a study published Tuesday. Almost 80 per cent of the rescue lending was made between 2016 and 2021, mainly to middle-income countries including Argentina, Mongolia and Pakistan,