News

SBP penalises 7 more banks for forex violations

Pakistan’s central bank has once again found at least seven commercial banks, including leading ones, to have violated instructions on transactions in foreign currencies, imposing financial penalties totalling Rs775.54 million on as many as nine banks in the quarter ending March 31, 2024. The central bank has tightened its oversight of foreign exchange dealings by commercial banks and exchange

Pakistan to miss budget deficit goal

A new International Monetary Fund report showed that Pakistan is set to miss this fiscal year’s budget deficit target by approximately Rs1 trillion, as the global lender anticipates the country’s increased reliance on loans in the coming years. The IMF released the report from Washington on the same day Pakistan’s finance minister sought assistance from the United States for “debt financing”.

Stocks snap five-session record-breaking spree

Bulls tossed the benchmark index above the 71,000 barrier for the first time in the history of the Pakistan Stock Exch­ange (PSX) on Tue­sday, but the market came under selling pressure, snapping the five-day record-breaking spree amid uncertainty about the outcome of talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In the preceding session, the index scaled an all-time high on prevailing opti

Shifting gears

AFTER many years of extreme uncertainty and political instability, it now seems like things are finally starting to move. Two developments this week point to this. First is the visit of the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, during which the talks seem to have focused in significant measure on some form of economic engagement between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The language used by the Saudi fore

Cement bags must carry making, expiry dates: Comp­etition Commission of Pakistan

To enhance consumer protection and ensure transparency, the Comp­etition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has pr­o­posed amendments to the Pakistan Stan­dard Specification for all five types of cement. In a policy note issued on Tuesday, the CCP has recommended a mandatory disclosure of manufacturing and expiry dates on cement packaging. Highlighting the significance of this recommendation, the