ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Friday notified procedures for new registration of manufacturers for concessionary tariff rates on supply of electricity and gas. The standard operating procedures were notified through a sales tax circular no 4 of 2020 released on Friday. The procedure for registration of new entrants in export-oriented sectors shall become applicable with effect from …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s exports grew for the fourth consecutive month in December to $2.357 billion, up 18.3 per cent from $1.993bn in the corresponding month last year, data released by the Ministry of Commerce showed on Friday. However, the December export proceeds posted a growth of 8.4pc when compared with $2.174bn in November 2020. The increase in overall exports is mainly …

NEW YORK: Three Chinese companies will be booted off the New York Stock Exchange this month under an executive order signed in November by President Donald Trump. The exchange says China Telecom Corp. Limited, China Mobile Limited, and China Unicom Hong Kong Limited will be delisted from the exchange. Trump issued an order Nov 12 barring investment in publicly traded …

ISLAMABAD: In the wake of the first meeting with a delegation of the IPPs to discuss payment of circular debt and implementation of memorandums of understanding (MoUs) signed with the power producers, the government has decided to pay Rs135 billion out of Rs450bn circular debt and settle the remaining amount by the end of the current calendar year. Sources in …

KARACHI: Foreign investment in local bonds reached $77.2 million till Dec 31, 2020, data released by the State Bank of Pakistan showed on Friday. With the emergence of Covid-19 in March, foreign investments in treasury bills and Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) left the country within a few months. However, foreign investors started to return in Nov 2020, with the PIBs …

American fashion designer Alexander Wang has denied the allegations of sexual assault placed against him. The designer issued a statement earlier this week where he termed the anonymous accounts of sexual assault, “grotesquely false.” “Over the last few days, I have been on the receiving end of baseless and grotesquely false accusations,” he said, per E! News. “These claims have …

Movie theater operators, after a year of dismal ticket sales during the pandemic, are hoping a lineup of superheroes, fighter pilots and cinema’s most famous spy will help them stage a comeback in 2021. Roughly two-thirds of theaters remain shut in the United States and Canada, normally the world’s largest film market. Box office receipts in 2020 plunged 80% from …

Priyanka Chopra had a perfect start to her 2021 as her latest offering We Can Be Heroes ranked number 1 on Netflix. The starlet took to Instagram to share the big news with her fans. Pee Cee wrote, “What a great way to start New Year’s Eve and end this year. Thank you all for watching #wecanbeheroes and enjoying it! …

Hollywood star Ben Affleck left the internet in splits after he ended up becoming a meme overnight. The Batman actor’s recent outing to grab some breakfast to-go from Dunkin Donuts became the talk of town after he was seen struggling to hold a tray of iced coffees and munchkins. In the midst of his struggle, the Argo star almost met with a horrible disaster …

Movie theater operators, after a year of dismal ticket sales during the pandemic, are hoping a lineup of superheroes, fighter pilots and cinema’s most famous spy will help them stage a comeback in 2021. Roughly two-thirds of theaters remain shut in the United States and Canada, normally the world’s largest film market. Box office receipts in 2020 plunged 80% from …