News

Major relief in power bills for homes, industry

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday announced a reduction of about 12 to 17 per cent in electricity rates for various consumer categories through a combination of quarterly adjustments, savings secured from independent and state-owned power producers and diversion of petroleum and grid levies on oil and gas products. Speaking at an event especially organised to announce the tariff cut, th

Corporate profits down 1pc in 2024

The profits of the companies listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) fell one per cent to Rs1.62 trillion in 2024 from Rs1.64tr in 2023, according to a research report by Topline Securities Ltd. In US dollar terms, the profitability stood at $5.8bn, down 1pc year-on-year in 2024. However, excluding the exploration and production (E&P) sector, the profitability of KSE 100 companies improved

Losing the plot

YOU can tell when a government in Pakistan has lost the plot when they turn to the bureaucrats for ideas on how to make change happen. There are usually many other markers for this loss of the plot, but once the bureaucrats are in charge of generating the ideas which inform the government’s agenda for change, you can say pretty clearly that the gig is up and they have gone into treading water m

Finance: Looking for more to export

Pakistan has pledged to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that it will “further strengthen institutional capacity to fight corruption and significantly reduce trade barriers to support inclusive growth and a level playing field for business and investment.” This statement is part of the press release issued by the IMF on March 25, announcing that it had reached a staff-level agreement with

Chaos in the global shipping industry

The Trump administration’s proposed massive port fees on Chinese-built and –operated cargo vessels set in motion the bigger threat of a trade war besides potentially disrupting global supply chains and creating uncertainty in the global maritime industry. The proposed US action to curb China’s dominance in shipping and revive its own shipbuilding industry will expand the punitive tariffs agains