The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday it is continuing virtual talks with Pakistan on a new, homegrown Extended Fund Facility (EFF). IMF spokesperson and Director of Communications, Julie Kozack, told journalists at a news briefing in Washington that an IMF staff mission visited Pakistan from May 13 through May 23. “We made significant progress towards reaching a staff-l
The State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) foreign exchange reserves have remained around $9 billion since the IMF’s $1.1 billion arrival in April, reflecting no other inflows. The central bank reported on Thursday that its reserves increased by a meagre $16 million to $9.109bn during the week ended May 31 without mentioning the source of this inflow. However, the reserves of the commercial banks fe
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Thursday notified Rs3.33 per unit additional fuel cost against consumption in April to enable ex-Wapda distribution companies (Discos) to raise another Rs29 billion in June as the government confirmed on record a minor impact of solar net metering on electricity sales. Nepra “has reviewed and assessed a National Average Uniform increas
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has estimated a shortfall of Rs175 billion in the current fiscal year (2023-24), as the superior courts have suspended the implementation of new measures announced by the government to tax the rich. “We have informed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif about the amount stuck due to decisions by superior courts,” a tax official told Dawn on Thursday. The courts st
Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday continued its bearish trend and lost nearly 450 points amid uncertainty surrounding the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)’s policy rate announcement ahead of the federal budget presentation. Earlier, the market opened on a positive note but soon investor sentiment turned bearish as the day progressed. The KSE-100 index took a deep dive before midday as conc