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As Covid-19 cases resurge across Pakistan, the positivity rate in the country’s financial capital, Karachi, reached alarming levels to come in at 21.23 per cent on Thursday. Data from the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) showed that on June 16, 53 people in the metropolis tested positive for the virus. The number of cases, however, more than doubled within …

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said on Wednesday that a Chinese consortium of banks and Pakistan had signed a $2.3 billion (15bn renminbi) loan facility agreement, with cash inflow expected within a “couple of days”. The minister made the announcement on Twitter, saying the agreement was signed by the Pakistani side yesterday. “We thank the Chinese government for facilitating this transaction,” …

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet on Tuesday decided to issue Sukuk bonds and impose more tax on wealthy people to provide relief to the poor who were burdened by unprecedented inflation. Presided over by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the meeting decided to issue Sukuk bonds in both local and international markets on 40 assets including highways, lands and hotels of the …

A monitoring mission of the European Union’s (EU) Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) arrived in Islamabad on Wednesday for an assessment of the effective implementation of 27 international conventions, a press release issued by the EU mission in Islamabad said. Pakistan was granted GSP+ status in 2013, granting Pakistani products duty-free access to the European market. The EU monitoring mission, comprising …

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday to carry out delimitation in Islamabad anew and issue a revised schedule for local government elections in the capital within 65 days. IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah issued the directives after taking up pleas filed by the PTI, PML-N and PPP, which sought a delay in …

An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 killed at least 920 people in Afghanistan early on Wednesday, disaster management officials said, with more than 600 injured and the toll expected to grow as information trickles in from remote mountain villages. Photographs on Afghan media showed houses reduced to rubble, with bodies swathed in blankets lying on the ground. Helicopters were deployed in …

The US dollar continued to set new records on Tuesday as it rose to Rs212 against the local currency during early morning trade in the interbank market. According to the Forex Association of Pakistan (FAP), the rupee depreciated by over Rs2 to reach an all-time low of Rs212 against the dollar from Monday’s close of Rs209.96. Yesterday, the greenback appreciated by a …

A day after President Arif Alvi refused to give his assent for the second time to a piece of legislation seeking to clip the vast powers of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi rejected the notion on Tuesday that the NAB reforms bill was designed with the aim to close ongoing graft cases against the PML-N leadership. “Cases …

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Monday issued notices to the Election Commission of Pakistan and provincial authorities on a petition of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan against delimitation process for local government constituencies and demarcation of towns in Karachi. MQM-P convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui along with other party leaders petitioned the SHC stating that the delimitation and town demarcations …

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Tuesday reserved its verdict in the much-delayed prohibited funding case — previously referred to as the foreign funding case — against the PTI. The case, which was filed by party founding member Akbar S Babar, has been pending since Nov 14, 2014. Babar, who is no longer associated with PTI, had alleged serious financial irregularities …