Business

Oil prices dropped about three per cent on Monday as a fast-spreading new coronavirus strain that has shut down much of the United Kingdom fuelled worries over a slower recovery in fuel demand amid tighter restrictions in Europe. Brent crude slid $1.54, or three per cent, to $50.72 a barrel by 0510 GMT after rising 1.5pc and touching its highest …

In June 2009, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) furnished to the Justice Bhagwandas Commission a report on alleged wrongdoings by government functionaries and the oil industry that caused losses of over Rs83 billion in five years. The NAB report that covered the petroleum pricing mechanism between June 2001 and June 2006 was originally submitted to the then president Gen Pervez …

Crude oil markets are on up. Prices rose after the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a decline in the US crude oil inventory by 3.1 million barrels for the week to Dec 11. This gave a boost to market sentiments. In the midst of all this, two opposing camps appear endeavouring to sway the market sentiments. Some are beginning …

ISLAMABAD: The economies of Asia and the Pacific must put water security on top of their post-Covid-19 agenda and adapt to climate change, the Asian Develop­ment Bank (ADB) said in its Asian Water Development Outlook 2020. Despite achievements in the Asia Pacific region over the last few decades, 1.5 billion people living in rural areas and 600 million in urban areas …

KARACHI: Stocks climbed for the fourth successive week with the KSE-100 index recording gains of 1,270 points (three per cent) at 43,740. The outgoing week witnessed the index at its two-and-a-half year high. The entry of new investors in the market saw surge in investor participation and traded volumes. Shares across the board climbed, mainly those in the pharmaceutical, automobiles, …

ISLAMABAD: Poor tax compliance in gold and precious stone sectors is causing huge losses to the national exchequer, said a report released by the Federal Board of Revenue’s Directorate General Intelligence and Investigation Inland Revenue. The findings come at a time when the FBR has notified rules to clamp down on terror financing in the real estate, gems and jewellery …

NEW DELHI: Apple Inc has placed supplier Wistron Corp on probation, saying on Saturday it would not award the Taiwanese contract manufacturer new business until it addressed the way workers were treated at its southern India plant. Early findings of an Apple audit in the wake of violence at the Wistron plant in India’s Karnataka state showed violations of its …

WASHINGTON: The United States on Friday announced it has imposed export controls on 77 Chinese companies including the country’s biggest chipmaker, SMIC, restricting its access to US technology over its alleged ties to China’s military. The announcement in the final weeks of President Donald Trump’s term comes after relations between Washington and Beijing soured under his administration, which saw the …

ISLAMABAD: The weekly inflation based on Sensitive Price Index (SPI) for the combined consumption group witnessed a nominal decrease of 0.22 per cent compared to the preceding week. The SPI for the week ended on Dec 17 was recorded at 140.73 points against 141.04, showed data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Friday. As compared to the …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s textile and clothing exports grew by 4.88 per cent year-on-year to $6.04 billion between July to November FY21 compared to $5.76bn in the same period last year, data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) showed on Friday. In November, export proceeds were up by 9.27pc from a year ago. In October, export proceeds were up by …