The rising expectation of an interest rate cut following a steep deceleration in inflation and a stable rupee on surging remittances drove the benchmark KSE 100 index to an all-time high in the outgoing week. Optimism about a further deceleration in CPI inflation in the current month and the expectation of positive talks with the IMF team next week, which would mark the start of formal negotiat
Pension reform is again a hot topic, but this time, bureaucrats will make it appear as if it is intended to benefit top officials. The reforms go beyond just raising the retirement age or taxing pensions. Instead, a series of actions, similar to those that were done in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), should be seriously considered to reduce the cost of pensions to the government exchequer. The nationa
The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has issued warnings to 12 beauty product manufacturers for deceptive marketing that made false and misleading claims. A preliminary probe revealed that these companies were prima facie engaged in advertising their products as “natural, organic, sustainable, pure, and chemical-free” without any scientific evidence supporting their claims. Such unsu
Pakistan’s exports to European countries declined 6.27 per cent in the first nine months of the current fiscal year. Exports to the European Union states have begun to dip in the current fiscal year despite a GSP+ status that allows most Pakistani goods a duty-free entrance into European markets. In October 2023, the European Parliament unanimously voted to extend the GSP+ status for anothe
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has endorsed the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) decision to keep the interest rate unchanged despite a sharp deceleration in inflation. The IMF-Pakistan SBA (2nd and Final Review) Country Report made it clear that the Fund was willing to see no change in the interest rate despite demand from the stakeholders in the wake of falling inflation, which has widen