The Pakistan Banks Association (PBA) on Thursday inaugurated the second Pakistan Banking Summit 2026 (PBS’26), setting the stage for two days of high-level discussions on the policies, partnerships, and innovations required to strengthen Pakistan’s financial sector and support the country’s next phase of economic growth. The opening day brought together more than 600 attendees from across Pakis
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has revised Pakistan’s economic growth forecast for FY2027 downward to 3.7 percent, citing higher energy costs and mounting pressure on workers’ remittances, while sharply enhanced inflation projections for both FY2026 and FY2027 due to rising food and fuel prices and spillover risks from the Middle East conflict. In its Asian Development Outlook (July 2026), th
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) successfully met its foreign exchange reserves target for FY26, with its holdings surpassing USD18 billion by the end of June 2026. In the last week of June, SBP’s reserves rose significantly around USD 2 billion. The milestone reflects improved external account stability, supported by higher remittance inflows, maturity of timely external financing and bette
Gold prices edged higher on Friday as the dollar softened, but were on track for a weekly decline on concerns that escalating US-Iran tensions could fuel inflation and keep the US Federal Reserve on a hawkish monetary policy path. Spot gold was up 0.2% at $4,128.92 per ounce, as of 0303 GMT, and headed for an over 1% weekly fall. U.S. gold futures for August delivery were steady at $4,139.5
Oil prices fell in early trading on Friday but remained on track for weekly gains as the United States and Iran continued trading strikes. Concerns that accelerating inflation could soften oil demand weighed on the market and pressured prices. Brent futures fell 6 cents, or 0.08%, to $76.24 a barrel by 0125 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lost 4 cents, or 0.06%, to $72.04. For