Business

KARACHI: Bank lending to private sector plunged 88 per cent in more than five months of the current fiscal year reflecting slow economic activities. The recently issued State Bank data showed that net lending to the private sector was just Rs10.3 billion during July 1 to Dec 11 period of this fiscal year against Rs88.1bn in the same period of …

ISLAMABAD: At a time when the economy is grappling with second wave of Covid-19, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has accepted Pakistan’s plea to delay implementation of some significant tax measures for a period of six months. The agreement was reached during technical-level talks on delaying tax measures in the sales tax act and on changes in the personal income …

LONDON: Britain is set for a new chapter on Friday after securing a hard-fought post-Brexit trade deal with the European Union as EU envoys gave the accord, reached only after months of tortuous negotiations, a sober welcome. “There was no great joy because a divorce is not really good news,” one EU diplomat told AFP. Member state envoys to the EU …

ISLAMABAD: The drive to ensure effective compliance with Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) regime led to unprecedented enforcement actions against non-compliant institutions and imposition of dissuasive penalties amounting to Rs32.280 million regarding 76 orders, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) said on Thursday. In its annual report for financial year 2019-20, the SECP detailed measures which …

KARACHI: The bulls took over control of the market on the last trading day of the rollover week. It propelled the KSE-100 index up by 329.07 points or 0.76 per cent to settle for the prolonged week-end at 43,416.77. The market has managed to recover 500 points from the 860 points it conceded in the earlier three days. The significant …

ISLAMABAD: Putting country’s fiscal deficit at 1.7 per cent of GDP (Rs753 billion) in first four months of current fiscal year, the government on Thursday said continued economic recovery in recent months could be affected by the resurgence of new Covid-19 cases. “With the resurgence of new cases of coronavirus, still there is a risk of slower economic performance mainly …

BRUSSELS: Just a week before the deadline, Britain and the European Union struck a free-trade deal on Thursday that should avert economic chaos on new year’s day and bring a measure of certainty for businesses after years of Brexit turmoil. Once ratified by both sides, the agreement will ensure Britain and the 27-nation bloc can continue to trade in goods …

ISLAMABAD: The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on Thursday submitted more documents with the scrutiny committee of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) auditing its accounts, informed sources told Dawn. The documents, the sources said, had been submitted in response to the committee’s latest questionnaire. The committee, which met on Thursday after a gap of more than two months, has now …

ISLAMABAD: With a view to provide micro loans to small merchants and traders though a regulated regime the first peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform was launched on Wednesday. Addressing the launching ceremony, Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan chairman Aamir Khan said serving the micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) was a priority as they play a vital role in the …

SWABI: Multinational and local tobacco companies have increased their requirements of tobacco crop by 10.86 million kilograms to 56.48m kg for the upcoming year, sources told Dawn on Wednesday. Last year, the total demand from tobacco companies was 45.61m kg. Tobacco growers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have strongly condemned the delay, stating that they could not cultivate the crop according to their earlier …