Business

• Evaluation department cites lack of political backing to reforms • Report finds fault with bank’s performance ISLAMABAD: The independent evaluation department (IED) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has expressed concern over insufficient political support to reforms, inadequate staffing and poor funding to development projects, resulting in suboptimal outcome of its $7 billion support over the past five years. …

Another week, another report from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). It’s the Payments Systems Review for July-September. It reveals that the total payments transactions grew by 23 per cent year-on-year in volume and 8pc in value in the first quarter of 2020-21. Mostly the report tells us what we have already been seeing for a long time: PRISM transactions …

Oil prices slipped on Monday from multi-month highs as a continued surge in coronavirus cases globally forced a series of renewed lockdowns, including strict new measures in Southern California in the United States, the world’s top oil consumer. Brent crude oil futures were down 21 cents, or 0.4 per cent, at $49.04 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate oil futures …

QUETTA: Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed has said that the opening of border trade routes will boost the country’s economy enormously and benefit the people linked with it. During a visit to the border town of Chaman, the authorities concerned briefed the minister about the International Trade Border Management System and development projects initiated by the National Logistics Cell in …

NEW DELHI: India’s government failed on Saturday to break a deadlock with farmers protesting over agricultural reforms and will meet again on Wednesday, the agriculture minister and union leaders said. Thousands of Indian farmers have demonstrated against the laws, which they say threaten their livelihoods, by camping on the outskirts of the capital New Delhi and blocking highways. Prime Minister …

KARACHI: Stocks galvanised 1,400 points (3.4 per cent) in the outgoing week to close at 42,207. Including the preceding week’s gains of 620 points (1.5pc), the benchmark represented a rise of 2,220 points (close to 5pc) in two weeks. It was by far a great turnaround from weeks of losses before. Massive flow of liquidity; attractive valuations; the optimism in …

KARACHI: A new survey released by the prestigious Centre for Economic Research in Pakistan (CERP) shows many households are recovering from the devastating impact of the Covid-19 lockdown, but full recovery is still some distance away. In the month of September, for example, 51 per cent of the respondents said they had to make some sort of compromise on food …

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has received nearly 23 per cent less income tax returns for the tax year 2020 compared to the preceding year ahead of the Dec 8 deadline. The board received 1.31 million tax returns until Dec 5 as against 1.69m returns filed in the tax year 2019. These include both salaried and non-salaried individuals, …

KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Dr Reza Baqir said on Friday that persons with disabilities could economically support themselves and contribute to the society when provided with adequate education, rehabilitation and financial and moral support. He said this in an online meeting with President Dr Arif Alvi which was also attended by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister …

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is expected to roll out a Track and Trace (T&T) System for specific goods including tobacco, cement, sugar, and fertiliser by the end of June 2021, the body announced on Friday at the pre-bidding conference. The FBR said the last date of the bids — to grant a five-year licence for an IT-enabled …