News

IMF board to meet Dec 8 to approve disbursement of $1.2bn to Pakistan

The International Monetary Fund’s Executive Board will meet on Dec 8 to review Pakistan’s request for a $1.2 billion disbursement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), according to the Fund’s updated schedule. Pakistan and the IMF reached a staff-level agreement in October after negotiations in Karachi, Islamabad, and Washington. The deal,

Customs foils smuggling bids worth Rs74.4m in KP

The Collectorate of Customs Enforcement, Peshawar, has seized smuggled goods worth an estimated Rs74.4 million in a series of coordinated operations across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) said on Sunday. In the largest action, the Enforcement Division in D.I. Khan intercepted three trucks carrying 12,200 kg of smuggled betel nuts, 4,021 sleeves of foreign-origin cigarette

Oil holds at two-week highs on expected US rate cut, geopolitical risks

Oil prices hovered at two-week highs on Monday as investors expect a Federal Reserve interest rate cut this week that will lift economic growth and energy demand while eyeing geopolitical risks that threaten oil supplies from Russia and Venezuela. Brent crude futures rose 4 cents, or 0.06%, to $63.79 a barrel by 0008 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $60.15 a barrel, up 7 cen

Intra-day update: rupee records gain against US dollar

The Pakistani rupee strengthened against the US dollar, appreciating 0.07% during the opening minutes of trading in the inter-bank market on Monday. At 10am, the local currency was hovering at 280.23, a gain of Re0.19 against the greenback. During the previous week, the Pakistan rupee posted a marginal gain, appreciating by Re0.10 or 0.04% against the US dollar in the inter-bank market. T

Bullish momentum at bourse, KSE-100 gains over 1,100 points in early trade

Bullish momentum was observed at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 Index gaining over 1,100 points during the opening minutes of trading on Friday. At 9:30am, the benchmark index was hovering at 167,424.92, an increase of 1,141.37 points or 0.69%. Across-the-board buying interest was observed in key sectors, including automobile assemblers, cement, fertilizer, com