Business

KARACHI: The MSCI on Wednesday announced outcome of its Semi-Annual Index review which to the surprise of some major market participants was addition of Lucky Cement to the MSCI Pakistan Index under the MSCI Global Standard Index in place of Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC), which was eased out as it fell short of the criteria. The other two …

LONDON: Marylebone Cri­cket Club (MCC) said late on Monday it would discuss research that suggests cricket bats made from bamboo could provide a cheaper alternative to the traditional willow. The Cambridge University study said its prototype bamboo bat was cheaper to produce, more sustainable and stronger than willow blades and could grow the game worldwide. The article, published in the …

LAHORE: The PTI government is targeting disbursement of Rs60 billion through commercial banks as clean, collateral-free loans among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) over the next three years, says a senior official of the Small and Medium Enterprise Development Authority (Smeda). “The SMEs, mostly small businesses, will be eligible to obtain bank loans up to Rs10 million on the basis …

KARACHI: With Eidul Fitr only a couple of days away, poultry retail prices hit the highest-ever rate of up to Rs350-360 per kg for live bird, Rs520-640 for meat (with and without giblets) and Rs800 per kg for boneless, showing a jump of Rs100-150 per kg in the last one week. Poultry sector people say that massive price hike was …

KARACHI: The Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) on Tuesday urged the Sindh government to allow small traders and shopkeepers in the city to open businesses ahead of Eidul Fitr from iftar to sehri so that they could recoup some of the losses caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Urging the provincial government to minimise the hardships faced by distres­sed …

ISLAMABAD: As many as 1,083 projects worth Rs340 billion have been registered with the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) along with another 292 tentative projects with an indicative investment of Rs43bn under the prime minister’s package for the construction industry. About 3,851 buyers had shown interest in purchasing properties by availing tax incentives for the construction sector till May 6. …

ISLAMABAD: While claiming that the economy has been put on the right track, Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday said that the appointment of Shaukat Tarin as finance minister is aimed at controlling inflation and increasing economic growth rate. In a live TV programme — Apka Wazeer-e-Azam Apke Saath — during which he took telephone calls from citizens, the prime …

ISLAMABAD: The National Price Monitoring Committee (NPMC) on Monday directed provincial government departments to keep the prices of basic commodities in check and import four million tonnes of wheat for building buffer stock. The NPMC at a meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin, declared that cartelisation would not be tolerated at any cost. Stern action should be taken by …

KARACHI: While taking full advantage of ineffective price checking mechanism and soaring demand ahead of Eidul Fitr, meat merchants came out with another price jump of Rs50-100 per kg in veal beef rates. The new price of veal meat with and without bones charged by various meat merchants is Rs750 and Rs850 per kg which was Rs630-650 and Rs730-750 ahead …

PARIS: Electric cars will be cheaper to build than fossil fuel vehicles across Europe within six years and could represent 100 per cent of new sales by 2035, according to a study published on Monday. Carmakers are shifting en masse to electric and hybrid models in order to bring average fleet emissions under a European Union limit of 95 grams …