Tag: News

Mar222023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Algerian president says Morocco ties reach ‘point of no return’ | News

The North African neighbours have been locked in a bitter rivalry for decades over the disputed territory of Western Sahara.Algeria’s relations with Morocco have reached “the point of no return”, according to Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, the latest evidence of the continued poor relationship between the two countries, which broke off relations in 2021. Speaking to Al Jazeera in an interview on Tuesday, Tebboune said that while he regretted the deteriorating relations between Algeria and its neighbour, he blamed Morocco for the current state of affairs. “We have practically reached the point of no return,” said Tebboune, who became president in 2019 after the resignation of longtime leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika. “Our position is a response [to Morocco’s actions], we were never...

Mar212023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Finch, de Kock unveiled on Major League Cricket draft day | Cricket News

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Finch, de Kock, Chand named by franchise teams for the US T20 cricket tournament scheduled to take place in July.Former Australia captain Aaron Finch will lead the San Francisco Unicorns in the inaugural edition of the United States’ new Twenty20 cricket tournament while South Africa’s Quinton de Kock will play for the Seattle Orcas. Finch and de Kock were among six overseas signings announced during Major League Cricket’s (MLC) Domestic Player Draft on Sunday, in which each of the six teams picked nine US-based players. MLC will be played from July 13 to 30. It will become the latest T20 league to surface across the globe, just months after South Africa and the United Arab Emirates introduced their versions to the cricketing world and almost 15 years after the Indian Premier League (IP...

Mar202023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

As IMF shifts towards inclusive growth, is Pakistan ready?

Business

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s decades-old policies that give preferential access to state resources to a select few sectors and ensure strong government footprints have placed it among nations that have the lowest inclusive growth and low access to education and healthcare, endangering the unparalleled demographic dividends. A book of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), “Promoting Inclusive Growth in the Middle East and North Africa: Challenges and Opportunities in a Post-Pandemic World”, outlines the prevailing poor economic conditions in a part of the world to which Pakistan also belongs. The countries that have the lowest inclusive growth scores are Yemen, Mauritania and Pakistan. They lag behind other countries in the private sector and financial inclusion the most. In terms of access...

Mar202023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 390 | Russia-Ukraine war News

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As the Russia-Ukraine war enters its 390th day, we take a look at the main developments.Here is the situation as it stands on Monday, March 20, 2023: Fighting Putin made a surprise visit to the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Mariupol on Sunday in a trip condemned by members of its exiled city council. Ukrainian forces outside the embattled eastern city of Bakhmut are managing to keep Russian units at bay so ammunition, food, equipment and medicines can be delivered to defenders, according to the army. Three civilians have been killed and two wounded in Russian shelling of a residential building in the southern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia on Sunday, regional officials said. The Kremlin has claimed drone flights by the United States over the Black Sea are a sign of “direct” US inv...

Mar192023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

SBP abolishes 1.5% fee on debit, credit card transactions

Business

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has abolished the mandatory minimum fee of 1.5%, which was being charged by banks from merchants on financial transactions done through debit and credit cards, and allowed financial institutions to charge even less than 1.5% to promote digital banking. The central bank has maintained maximum limit of the fee at 2.5%, according to a notification issued on Friday. Besides, the SBP made it mandatory for all e-commerce players and online payment receivers in Pakistan to start accepting payments through cards maximum by June 30, 2023. Earlier, fuel stations had stopped accepting payments through debit and credit cards and demanded the abolition of 1.5% fee. Also, petroleum product dealers and oil marketing companies (OMCs) like Pakistan State Oil ...

Mar192023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

N Korea fires ballistic missile towards sea, say S Korea, Japan | Weapons News

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Launch comes days after North Korea test-fired a suspected ICBM into the Sea of Japan.North Korea has fired a ballistic missile towards the sea off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, the Yonhap news agency reported, citing South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The JSC did not immediately provide specifics on Sunday’s launch. The Japan Coast Guard also said what was fired by North Korea could be a ballistic missile. The launch comes after North Korea fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan on Thursday, hours before South Korea’s president flew to Tokyo for a summit that discussed ways to counter their nuclear-armed neighbour. North Korean state media described the launch of the Hwasong 17 as a response to t...

Mar182023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Still importing to ‘Make in Pakistan’

Business

The “Make in Pakistan” mobile phones dream seems to have fallen flat, despite tax benefits of over Rs46 billion given in the last fiscal year, as the government has failed to ensure localisation of mobile handsets manufacturing in violation of a state policy. The criminal negligence on part of the Engineering Development Board (EDB) and the Ministry of Industries has also led to giving illegal tax benefits beyond June 2022 on packaging materials, in addition to creating another preferential businessmen-class after the car assemblers. Sources told The Express Tribune that the EDB and Ministry of Industries have failed to ensure the one year to two years localisation plan of the devices and the material used in the manufacturing of the mobile phones. Three years ago, the pr...

Mar182023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Petroleum product import falls 5% to $1.26b

Business

KARACHI: Pakistan’s import of petroleum products, which is the largest contributor to its total import bill, has decreased by 5% to $1.26 billion in February compared to the previous month of January, according to official data reported on Friday. However, despite the decline, it still accounts for almost one-third of the country’s import bill. Speaking to The Express Tribune, Arif Habib Limited Head of Research Tahir Abbas said, “The drop in commodity import is attributed to a decrease in demand due to a massive rupee depreciation and the imposition of new taxes on the recommendation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).” “The rupee has depreciated by 60% in the last year to Rs282 against the US dollar. The government has also imposed a petroleum development levy of Rs50 per lit...

Mar182023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Over 100 Trump presidential gifts unaccounted for: US Democrats | Donald Trump News

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Legislators say the Trump family failed to disclose $250,000 in gifts received from foreign governments while in the White House.A golden golf club from Japan and swords from Saudi Arabia’s royal family were among the gifts that legislators in the United States say the family of former President Donald Trump failed to disclose during his time in office. In a statement released on Friday, Democrats on the US House Oversight Committee listed more than 100 items they allege Trump and his family did not report during his four years in the White House. The items were valued at more than $250,000. On the list were 16 gifts from Saudi Arabia worth more than $45,000 in total — including a dagger valued at up to $24,000 — and 17 presents from India that included expensive cufflinks, a vase and a...

Mar172023 by Waqas-ChNo Comments

Agri sector can wipe out CAD in 6 years

Business

KARACHI: Pakistan’s agriculture sector has the potential to overcome the current account deficit and balance-of-payment crisis within six years, according to State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Former Governor Salim Raza. Speaking at ‘Agri Connections 2023’, organised by the Pakistan Agricultural Coalition (PAC) on Thursday, Raza noted that the agriculture sector must sustainably grow at 6% to achieve the necessary economic growth and job creation. He added that the agriculture growth rate has remained stagnant over the years, contributing to a trade deficit of $5.5 billion in food and cotton imports in FY22, further widening the current account deficit to $17.4 billion in the same year. The PAC study highlights practical solutions to boost the agriculture sector’s major crop yields up to i...