Pakistani singer Rabi Pirzada after the private pictures controversy  came forth addressing the issue and stressing on her connection with religion in a video statement released on Thursday. In the video statement, the first since an explicit video of her went viral on the internet a few weeks ago, Pirzada appeared clad in a solemn black dress and headscarf, and …

Who would have thought that cricket and Bangladesh would have such a pivotal influence on the musical career of the famous Junooni Salman Ahmed? But they did, and as Junoon the band gets ready to head to Bangladesh for a historic concert, it seems that Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan had a hand in all this too. Decades ago, Salman …

NEW YORK: Soaring Disney shares lifted Wall Street to fresh records on Wednesday while stocks elsewhere in the world sagged as new signs emerged that Washington and Beijing are not as close to signing a trade deal as investors had hoped. Asian trading suffered also from violent Hong Kong protests that showed no sign of letting up, while US investors …

KARACHI: Bulls re­­su­med their run up on Wednesday after a day’s breather. The KSE-100 index recorded gains of 401.40 points (1.09 per cent) and crossed 37,000-level for the first time in six months (last seen on April 30), to settle at 37,166.96. The market also witnessed traded value at Rs10.8 billion which was the highest for 2019. But almost all …

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), in a meeting chaired by Finance Adviser Hafeez Shaikh on Wednesday, increased minimum support price for wheat by Rs50 to Rs1,350 in order to safeguard growers’ interests. The increase comes after a gap of five years, as the government last raised wheat support prices by Rs100 to Rs1,300 for 40kg bags back in 2014. …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran on Wednesday held out an assurance to top officials of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) that the tax machinery would be reformed in consultation with all stakeholders not only to restore confidence of taxpayers but also to raise potential revenue from all sectors. Almost a week after resistance from tax officers over the proposed reforms, …

KARACHI: The Sino-Pak Tire Manufacturing Joint Venture is “an import substitution opportunity” that seeks to leverage Pakistan’s locational advantage as well as growing market for vehicle tyres, said Dr Xu Peng, Managing Director of InvestTarget — the investment bank and private equity fund which is the largest investor in the consortium. The company will aim to produce five to six …

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump greeted his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House for a high-stakes meeting on Wednesday that underlined his claim to be ignoring the impeachment drama unfolding simultaneously in Congress. The two leaders were to hold several hours of meetings, including lunch, before giving a joint news conference. While Congress listened to evidence against Trump …

VENICE: Much of Venice was underwater on Wednesday after the highest tide in 50 years ripped through the historic Italian city, beaching gondolas, trashing hotels and sending tourists fleeing through rapidly rising waters. Officials blamed climate change while shopkeepers on the Grand Canal raged against those who have failed to protect the Unesco city from the high tide. They said …

WASHINGTON: “We have concerns about Kashmir, and we are watching the situation very closely,” says Eliot L. Engel, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, as another congressional panel reviews the consequences of India’s decision to revoke the valley’s special status. On Thursday, the Congressional Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission is holding a hearing to “examine the human rights situation …