News

Urea prices to rise on gas tariff adjustment

Urea prices are likely to increase by at least Rs100 per bag owing to the government’s commitment to the IMF to implement a semi-annual gas tariff adjustment by February 2025. In its recent report, the IMF revealed that the federal government has agreed to announce the adjusted tariff rates semi-annually to meet the revenue requirements of the Sui companies. Recently, both Sui Southern Gas C

No more sugar exports; cane crushing to start from 21st

The Sugar Advisory Board (SAB) has turned down the request for additional exports and warned that the export permits of mills that do not pay farmers’ dues would be revoked. The decision was made during a board meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Industries and Produc­tion Rana Tanveer Hussain. The meeting was attended by Comme­rce Minister Jam Kamal Khan and representatives from the Pakist

Opposition leader flays govt over ‘mini-budget’ plans

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan has said the government plans to introduce a mini-budget due to its failure to meet IMF targets, which the opposition will strongly condemn as the masses endure worsening economic conditions and continuous price hikes. Speaking to the media outside the Peshawar High Court on Thursday, the PTI leader criticised the government’s han

FBR receives 76pc more tax returns

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) received 5.215 million returns for the tax year 2024 until Nov 6, an increase of 76 per cent over the 2.959m received during the same period last year. The FBR received 86,035 returns last week, with pen­alty payments submitted beyond the Oct 31 deadline. The tax payment with returns for tax year 2024 reached Rs132.259 billion until Nov 6, compared to Rs77.

Falling credit profile blamed for foreign banks’ exit

Foreign banks are gradually withdrawing from Pakistan due to the country’s declining credit profile, while local banks, having grown significantly post-privatisation, are outcompeting their foreign counterparts, according to bankers. Speaking at the two-day Future Summit 2024, which concluded on Thursday, Ahmed Khan from Citi Pakistan explained that local banks have expanded since privatisation