KARACHI: Overall business confidence in Pakistan underwent “record improvement” in recent months, according to a survey conducted by the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI). The Business Confidence Index (BCI) Survey that the OICCI conducted across the country from May to July showed the overall Business Confidence Score (BCS) stood at nine per cent, up from minus 50pc …

KARACHI: Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin has agreed to review the proposals and recommendations of the Pakistan Stock Exchange and expressed his willingness to expedite tax refunds, reinstate tax rebate for companies upon listing, support SMEs growth through listing and funding capital market development. Addressing a meeting with the management and major stock market participants on Friday, the minister said that …

WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) largest-ever allocation of $650 billion in Special Drawing Rights (SDR) became effective on Monday and can bring about $2.7 billion of additional funding for Pakistan as well. “The largest allocation in history … is a significant shot in the arm for the world,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Geor­gieva said in a statement issued in …

LONDON: Thousands of climate change demonstrators thronged central London on Monday, as environmental activist group Extinction Rebellion held a new round of protests, promising two weeks of disruption. Protesters were greeted with a large police presence as they converged on Trafalgar Square in the heart of the British capital, where they rallied with a marching band and speeches. The latest …

NAIROBI: The United States on Monday imposed new sanctions over Ethiopia’s deadly Tigray conflict as hundreds of thousands of people face famine conditions under a government blockade the US has called a siege and fighting spreads into other parts of the country. The Treasury Department in a statement said the chief of staff of the defence forces of neighboring Eritrea, …

SINGAPORE: Vice Presi­dent Kamala Harris vowed “enduring engagement” in Asia on Monday, offering reassurances of Washington’s commitment to the region even as the United States completes its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban takeover. The hardline Islamists’ swift return to power a week ago, and desperate scenes of thousands trying to flee, have cast a shadow over the United …

BEIJING: China reported no new locally transmitted cases of Covid-19 on Monday for the first time since July, a sign the current outbreak may be waning amid Beijing’s ‘zero-tolerance’ stance and tough anti-virus measures across the country. More than 1,200 people have been confirmed infected in an outbreak that officials said has been mainly driven by the highly transmissible Delta …

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday received a telephone call from Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo who discussed with him the evolving situation in Afghanistan. According to a press release issued by the Prime Minister Office, Mr Khan underscored the importance of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan for Pakistan and for regional stability. He stressed that safety and …

LONDON: Iran resumed fuel exports to Afghanistan a few days ago following a request from the new Afghan government, which feels empowered by the US withdrawal to buy the sanctioned nation’s oil more openly, an Iranian official said. The price of gasoline in Afghanistan reached $900 per tonne as many Afghans drove out of cities, fearing reprisals and a return …

US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) chief William Burns held a secret meeting in Kabul with Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed US officials. The Monday meeting, which if confirmed will have been the highest-level encounter between the Taliban and the Biden administration since the group’s return to power, came as efforts to evacuate thousands of …