ISLAMABAD  - Federal Board of Revenue Chairman Ansar Javed Wednesday denied the news that government has increased the standard rate of general sales tax (GST) by 1 per cent through presidential ordinance."There are several such ecommendations but President did not issue any ordinance that ...

lahore - At a time when the business community is striving to accelerate economic activity in the country, the bureaucracy is all out to decelerate it and a Punjab Local Government notification dated April 5, 2013 is a classic example to this regard.The LCCI President Farooq Iftikhar said that an ...

PARIS  The unemployment rate across rich countries eased slightly to 8.0 percent in March, the OECD said on Wednesday but this meant that 48.3 million people were officially without work in the downdraught of the financial and eurozone debt crises. The figures and trends for the 34-nation OECD ...

LONDON - The Bank of England on Thursday voted to keep its main lending rate at its record-low level of 0.50 percent, deciding against mirroring a number of central banks who have cut borrowing costs in the past week. The BoE also opted against pumping out more new stimulus cash to boost economic ...

JOHANNESBURG: More than a quarter of South African workers are now out of work, official statistics showed on Monday. Statistics SA said that 4.6m South Africans were unemployed in the first quarter of the year, 25.2pc of the eligible population. Broader statistics paint an even bleaker picture of ...

KARACHI - Millers again increased the price of flour which brought Rs 2 addition in its retail prices in both quality of flour including fine and grind now available on Rs 38/kg and Rs 40/kg respectively at local market. Earlier prices of wheat grain rose by Rs 80-100 per 100-kg bag in the domestic ...

ISLAMABAD : Participants of a “National Consultation” seminar on natural gas sector governance voiced their concern regarding the issues of closed decision making process, weak democratic legitimacy and adoption of untested policy prescriptions over public interests. Tariq Kandan, ...

frankfurt - The European Central Bank will cut its key interest rate, already at an all-time low, at its policy meeting next week and may also unveil new measures to kick-start bank lending to businesses, analysts predict.The ECB's rate-setting governing council is to convene in Bratislava on ...

islamabad - The APNS Executive Committee thanked the Information and Broadcasting Minister Arif Nizami for increasing government advertisement rates for publications by 10 percent and requested the ministry to notify the increase at the earliest.  The All Pakistan Newspapers Society Executive ...

KARACHI - The increasing crime rate in the metropolis ahead of general elections has exposed tall claim of the government and law enforcing agencies.Being directed by the Supreme Court, the law enforcing agencies have been carrying out targeted operations in various areas of the city. The ...

LONDON :  British unemployment rose in February and wage growth slowed to a record low, suggesting cracks are starting to show in the labour market at a time when the central bank is split on another cash boost for the economy.Britain’s main jobless rate rose to 7.9 percent in the three ...

The State Bank of Pakistan Board of Directors decided on Friday to hold the bank’s policy rate at 9.5 percent, thus keeping the underlying interest rate punitively high. The board, which met at the bank’s Karachi offices, took this decision in view of the depleting foreign exchange ...

LAHORE – The business community on Friday expressed dismay at the State Bank of Pakistan for keeping the policy rate intact and strongly called for a downward revision to 8pc to encourage new investments and revive trade and industry.They said that the availability of cheaper money is ...

KARACHI - State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 9.5 per cent. The decision was taken by the Central Board of Directors of SBP at its meeting held here with Governor Yaseen Anwar in chair on Friday.The decision to keep the policy rate unchanged was taken in ...

LAHORE – Ombudsman Punjab Javed Mahmood on Thursday directed Finance Department to review and obtain Chief Minister’s approval to increase the meagre amount of Rs3000 per month minimum pension in order to fulfil the promise made to the elderly and hapless retired government employees ...

State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has decided to keep the policy rate unchanged at 9.5 percent. The decision was taken by the Central Board of Directors of SBP at its meeting held under the chairmanship of Governor, Mr. Yaseen Anwar in Karachi Friday.The decision to keep the policy rate unchanged was ...

LAHORE - The textile industry on Wednesday called for regionally competitive interest rates, urging the State Bank of Pakistan, which is announcing its key policy rate on Friday, to bring discount rate down to 8 per cent to counter weak growth and revive fresh, private investment in the economy to ...

ISLAMABAD –  The skill development through trainings can play vital role in reduction of poverty and enhancing the growth of economy in the country.This was stated by Chief Executive Officer (ECO) Institute of Rural Management (IRM) Roomi S. Hayat during concluding session of 10-days ...

The State Bank’s cut on Friday of its policy rate from 10 percent to 9.5 percent not just represents the first time in five years that it has gone below five percent, but it also represents the first time in the recent past that it has tinkered with the interest rate in the middle of the ...

LAHORE – The provincial government has constituted an auction committee to outsource distribution of market committee’s daily rate list. Secretary Market Committee Lahore Rao Nadim Asghar said that committee will held an auction to award contract to a private party for the distribution ...

LAHORE - SALMAN ABDUHU - The production of ghee and edible oil over 4 million kilograms per day has been halted by the manufacturers, as the strike of factories entered third day while no supply was made to any wholesale or retail market. Pakistan Vanaspati Manufacturers Association (PVMA) chairman ...

LAHORE - State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) decision to keep the policy rate unchanged failed to weaken the investor sentiments at the local bourse. Investors also ignored domestic political uncertainty, as strong corporate announcements, US State department’s allocation of $2.4 billion for ...

LAHORE – Pakistan Psychiatric Society (PPS) former President and Prof Emeritus King Edward Medical University Prof Dr Khalida Tareen has said frustration was the major factor behind the increasing trend of suicide attempt in our society. Addressing a function on “Increasing trend of ...

KARACHI - Gold price slipped by Rs 257 to close at Rs 50,228 per 10 grams in the local market on Friday as its international price dropped to $1,720 an ounce, market sources said.According to Karachi Sarafa Association official, tola (11.664 grams) price also fell by Rs 300 to close at Rs 58,600. ...

The State Bank of Pakistan has announced its economic policy for next two month, keeping policy rate unchanged at 12 percent. It was announced at news conference by SBP Governor Yasin Anwar on Saturday. He said that there was no hope of decline in petroleum prices due to tensions between Iran and ...

AHMAD AHMADANI: ISLAMABAD - In a move effectively connected to provide ease to the hard-pressed masses already battling with worsening fuel prices to meet both ends meet, sky-high price of LPG has surprisingly been slashed by Rs10 per kilogram in the country.Chairman Liquefied Petroleum Gas ...

AHMAD AHMADANIISLAMABAD - LPG price has been jacked up by Rs16 per kg as state-owned LPG producers the other day increased their price from Rs 93,856 to Rs109, 702 per ton while on the other hand LPG distributors association, terming recent surge as a ‘drone attack’ on the masses by ...

QUAIDABAD - The crime ratio in tehsil Quaidabad soared in 2011, it has been learnt.Reportedly, as many as 300 cases were registered in 2010, while 314 cases were registered last year. 14 people were killed in tehsil, out of which 5 persons including 3 women, were slaughtered in the name of ...

WASHINGTON  - The US Federal Reserve enters uncharted waters at its policy meeting this week as it reveals individual policymakers’ views on the future path of interest rates.Fed-watchers generally expect the central bank will leave monetary policy essentially unchanged after the economy ...

LONDON  - Profit warnings from British companies jumped more than 70 percent in the final three months of 2011, the biggest quarterly rise for a decade, as markets were rocked by economic uncertainty, Ernst & Young said on Sunday.Companies quoted on London's main list and junior AIM market ...