THE planned import policy reforms to recalibrate tariffs in line with Pakistan’s industrialisation and export aims signify a major positive shift in the government’s economic and growth strategy. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has approved a roadmap to drastically slash average customs tariffs from 19pc to 9.5pc in the next five years, besides eliminating decades-old distortive tariff protection
Minister of State for Information Technology and Telecom Shaza Fatima Khawaja said on Sunday that IT exports, including earnings from freelancers and IT companies, reached over $3.5 billion during July-April, with IT services alone accounting for $3.14bn. She said the country is moving “steadily towards the vision of a Digital Pakistan, where technology supports the economy and ensures inclusiv
The overriding objective of President Donald Trump’s ‘liberation day’ tariffs — most of which remain suspended until July while the White House renegotiates trade deals with dozens of countries running trade surpluses with America — is to re-industrialise America and bring blue-collar jobs back by rebuilding its manufacturing base. But that will not be possible for him without severely impairin
The World Bank has affirmed that the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan does not permit unilateral suspension — a stance Pakistan has maintained consistently. However, how soon India will consider this affirmation and retract its announcement of holding the treaty ‘in abeyance’ remains unclear. Despite international diplomatic efforts, including Donald Trump’s attempts to mediate a
For the most part, Pakistan’s financial services industry is quite boring, at least when it comes to designing products that customers need. But for anyone who cares to look, their books are a treasure trove. The recent episode of taxes is a great reminder, showing how banks engaged in window dressing at a scale that was unimaginable not long ago. While that story became mainstream, thanks to t