The illicit cigarette trade in Pakistan has emerged as a serious economic and public health concern, driven by weak regulatory enforcement and a significant knowledge gap among retailers, according to a new study. The report, titled ‘Tax Stamps and Illicit Cigarette Sales in Pakistan: Understanding Retailers’ Knowledge Gap’, was released by Umeed-i-Sehar, a non-profit organisation focused o
Finance chiefs of G20 countries were close to agreeing a common position on trade and other global challenges, which would be the first since US President Donald Trump’s election victory and tariff war. The G20, which emerged as a forum for cooperation to combat the 2008 global financial crisis, failed to reach a joint stance when finance ministers and central bankers met in February, to the di
Pakistan and China have decided to form technical working groups to explore and implement projects focusing on high-yield cotton seed development, advanced water-saving irrigation technologies and modern farming techniques. The decision to form technical working groups was taken at a meeting between Minister for National Food Security and Research, Rana Tanveer Hussain, and a Chinese delegation
The business community in Karachi observed a partial strike on Saturday against the tax measures and arrest powers of the federal tax authority under the Finance Act FY26. The call for a countrywide strike was issued last week by the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), backed by trade bodies, industrial area associations, petroleum dealers, transporters, and chain store operators.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) extended its record-breaking run on Thursday as a bullish rally lifted the KSE-100 index past the 138,000-point mark, fuelled by aggressive institutional buying and optimism over upcoming corporate earnings. According to Topline Securities, after pausing for two sessions, bullish sentiment returned strongly, pushing the benchmark index to an intraday high of