KARACHI: The cut-off yield for short-term treasury bills has risen by 126 basis points on the back of inflationary pressures as hopes fade away for cut in the State Bank of Pakistan’s policy rate. The auction of treasury bills, held on Wednesday, saw a sudden jump in the three-month T-bills, surprising many even though it was not improbable. On Wednesday, the …

MULTAN: The Multan Sultans juggernaut continues. It’s gone from bad to worse for two-time defending champions Lahore Qalandars. Led by their pugnacious captain Mohammad Riz­wan, the Sultans kept their perfect start to the HBL Pakistan Super League season intact when they downed the Qalandars by five wickets at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Wednesday night for their third straight victory. …

LONDON: Britain’s Trident nuclear-deterrent system misfired during a test last month, sending a missile crashing into the ocean off the Florida coast near the submarine that launched it, The Sun newspaper reported on Wednesday. The Ministry of Defence confirmed that an “anomaly” had occurred during the test but said Britain’s “nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective”. With Defence Secretary Grant Shapps …

LAHORE: The Punjab government on Wednes­day transferred Multan Division Commissioner Muhammad Abdul Aamer Khattak and posted him as Rawalpindi Division Commissioner. The reshuffle relieves Rawalpindi Development Authority Director General Muhammad Saif Anwar Jappa of additional charge of the Pindi commissioner post. The post of Rawalpindi Division commissioner had fallen vacant when the then office-holder, Liaqat Ali Chattha, tendered his resignation after alleging …

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court on Wednesday reserved its verdict on a petition by PTI-backed independent candidate Advocate Salman Akram Raja seeking contempt proceedings against the NA-128 returning officer (RO). Earlier, a counsel for the petitioner stated that the court had previously ordered the RO to make a decision according to the law based on Raja’s request. However, he said the RO …

GILGIT: The Karako­ram Highway (KKH) and Baltistan Road have once again been shut down due to landslides triggered by heavy snowfall and rain. The closures, announced on Wednesday, follow brief periods of restoration for light traffic earlier in the week, aggravating the challenges faced by both residents and tourists due to adverse weather. An official of the Gilgit-Baltistan Disaster Mana­gement Authority told the region’s …

BEIJING: Severe wea­ther warnings were in place across swathes of China on Wednesday as temperatures plummeted across the south and Beijing shivered in snowy conditions. Authorities renewed an orange alert — the highest in the country’s three-tier system — warning that average temperatures co­u­ld fall by six to 12 degrees Celsius by Friday in the south, where they are currently …

ISLAMABAD: Deputy Commissioner (DC) Irfan Nawaz Memon on Wednesday surrendered to the Islamabad High Court (IHC) in the contempt of court case after Justice Babar Sattar had barred his exit from every route, including border crossing, seaports and airports, a day earlier. Justice Sattar also issued non-bailable arrest warrants of DC Memon after he skipped the hearing of the contempt …

ISLAMABAD: An environmental sample collected from Balochistan’s Lasbela district has tested positive for wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1). The virus was found in a sewage sample collected from Lasbela, an official of the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH) said. Federal Health Minister Dr Nadeem Jan said that as long as this virus …

LAHORE: PML-N candidate for Punjab chief minister Maryam Nawaz on Wed­nesday described corruption and politically-motivated vandalism as the ‘red lines’ that her government would never allow anyone to cross. While presiding over a parliamentary meeting of her party at Jati Umra residence, Ms Nawaz pledged a new era of development in Punjab, vowing to deliver on every front, especially in …