ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal on Thursday said that by 2047, Pakistan would be included amongst the top 10 economies in the world.
“By working hard, we can bring Pakistan to the top 10 economies of the world by 2047 and for this, we have to silence negative voices,” he said.
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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities increased at a double-digit pace to a new record of nearly Rs81 trillion during the past year, as the country grapples with finding new sources of financing to meet its growing debt servicing needs due to junk credit ratings.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities surged by Rs8.4 trillion as of the end of March compared to the previous year. Consequently, the country’s debt and liabilities reached a record Rs81 trillion, with Rs4.4 trillion attributed to liabilities.
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ISLAMABAD: The Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCOE) is scheduled to meet on Thursday where it will consider an extension in deadline for signing implementation agreements with refineries for upgrading their plants.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will chair the meeting. According to sources, the CCOE will take up three agenda items including the circular debt report for February 2024, an incentive mechanism for the recovery of electricity arrears of more than two years and the extension in deadline for signing plant upgrade agreements under the Pakistan Oil Refining Policy for Up-gradation of Existing/Brownfield Refineries 2023.
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KARACHI: Pakistani currency on Wednesday ticked down Rs0.08 and closed at a two-week low at Rs278.26 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market apparently on the back of speculation that the government would let the rupee depreciate further to win the next International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programme by July 2024.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) data, the rupee had closed at Rs278.18 against the greenback on Tuesday.
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ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal, on Wednesday, underscored the criticality of political stability and continuity in economic policies to propel Pakistan towards sustained growth and social prosperity. Speaking at the Pakistan Development Summit, he highlighted the country’s abundant natural resources, envisioning rapid economic growth and social development within a decade.
The summit, themed “5Es Framework Roadmap to a Trillion Dollar Economy by 2035,” aimed to convene stakeholders from industry, academia, and sectoral professionals to chart Pakistan’s economic future. Through nine key thematic sessions under the 5Es Framework, expert insights will inform a comprehensive plan for sustainable economic development and social progress.
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KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday saw a U-shaped recovery, driven by multiple encouraging factors including the prime minister’s announcement to privatise state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which helped the KSE-100 index to scale new all-time highs.
Earlier, the trading session began on an optimistic note, when the market extended the previous day’s bullish momentum.
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KARACHI: On Wednesday, the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) upgraded Pakistan’s status by adding a new company from the country to its mainstream global Frontier Market (FM) index, a move that bolstered global investors’ confidence in Pakistan.
Global investors, with funds totalling $10 billion, track this index to make investment decisions worldwide, including in Pakistan.
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LAHORE: To facilitate documentation of the economy, all services under the Punjab Revenue Authority (PRA) will be brought under the tax net, declared the provincial finance minister.
Tax rate on all services should be uniform while the inclusion of exempted services in the tax net with a nominal rate would ensure the promotion of a documented economy, said Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman, Finance Minister of Punjab, while presiding over fourth meeting of the Resource Mobilisation Committee for 2024-25.
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KARACHI: Production at Pakistan’s large-scale manufacturing industries (LSMI) decreased by 9.35%, marking the third consecutive month of decline in March 2024, according to data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
The monthly Quantum Index of Manufacturing (QIM) dropped to 115.5 in March, compared to 132.4 in December 2023, with significant decreases observed in output from sugar, cement, and iron and steel products.
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ISLAMABAD: The cabinet has directed the ministries concerned to resolve the issues of dividends, revolving fund and taxation pertaining to the CPEC Special Economic Zones (SEZs) as a positive signal before the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to China.
Sources told The Express Tribune that the cabinet in a recent meeting directed the CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor) Secretariat to expedite the finalisation of sustainable projects for five corridors under CPEC phase-II before the PM’s trip to Beijing.
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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has shared a new macroeconomic framework with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), largely aligning with the Fund’s projections but indicating no significant increase in non-debt creating inflows—exports and remittances—during the next fiscal year as well.
The external sector-related projections suggest that the country will continue to rely on the global lender in the medium term to stay afloat. The targets outlined in the framework for the fiscal year 2024-25 budgets appear subdued, reflecting Pakistan’s challenging economic realities, which offer no room for higher sustainable economic growth in the medium term.
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The government slashed fuel prices on Wednesday, effective from May 16 (Thursday), in line with the recommendations of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), according to a notification issued by the finance ministry.
The ministry notified the new reduced prices of petrol and diesel for the next fortnight.
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KARACHI: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) surpassed the 75,000 points mark for the first time on Wednesday after the global index provider MSCI upgraded PSX's status with the addition of one new company to its mainstream Frontier Market Index.
The benchmark KSE-100 Index hit a new record high at 75,115 points, adding 0.78% or 584 points during the early hours of trade, crossing Tuesday's high of 74,531 points.
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KARACHI: Sindh Minister for Industries and Commerce, Jam Ikramullah Dharejo, announced that the Sindh government is planning to establish new industrial zones across the province, primarily in Karachi, as part of a new industrialisation policy.
The aim is to attract both local and foreign investors and businessmen to boost economic activities throughout the province.
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ISLAMABAD: As consumers start facing the sweltering heat of summer and the pain of load-shedding, the power sector seems to be getting out of control of the Shehbaz Sharif-led government as electricity theft and less-than-required bill recoveries are estimated to have caused a loss of Rs589 billion so far in the current financial year.
With hefty losses and unchecked electricity stealing, the government has ruled out any plans to hand over control of power distribution companies (DISCOs) to provinces. Instead, it has decided to launch a study for chalking out different workable models to improve the performance of these companies.
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ISLAMABAD: An official from the Federal Ombudsman Secretariat for Protection Against Harassment (FOSPAH), on Tuesday, stressed the critical necessity of raising awareness regarding the effective implementation of the Property Rights Act of 2020. The official underscored the multitude of challenges encountered by women, particularly concerning property rights post-marriage.
The senior official underscored the urgency of fostering awareness and advocacy efforts to address these issues comprehensively, highlighting the crucial role of the media in combating gender-based oppression prevalent in tribal areas.
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WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled a bundle of steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports including electric vehicle (EV) batteries, computer chips and medical products, risking an election-year standoff with Beijing in a bid to woo voters who give his economic policies low marks.
China immediately vowed retaliation. Its commerce ministry said Beijing was opposed to the US tariff hikes and would take measures to defend its interests.
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WASHINGTON: Following India’s signing of a 10-year contract to operate Iran’s Chabahar port, the US has issued a warning that its sanctions on Tehran persist, reiterating that “anyone” contemplating business deals with the Islamic Republic must be “aware of the potential risk.”
Simultaneously, the State Department’s Principal Deputy Spokesperson, Vedant Patel, stated that the Indian government would address its own foreign policy objectives.
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KARACHI: The Pakistani rupee on Tuesday remained largely stable, ticking up Rs0.02 to close at Rs278.18 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market amid commencement of talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a potential new loan programme of $8 billion.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) data, the local currency had closed at Rs278.20 against the greenback on Monday.
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ISLAMABAD: Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal on Tuesday directed the Power Division and the provincial government of Balochistan to devise a comprehensive strategy for shifting agricultural tube wells to solar energy, which would ensure cost-effective electricity supply to farmers in the province.
Chairing a high-level meeting, the minister discussed matters related to switching over electric agricultural tube wells to solar energy for cheap and uninterrupted power supply to farmers in Balochistan, said a press release issued by the Ministry of Planning. Ahsan Iqbal said that all resources were being utilised to ensure the timely completion of federal development projects and emphasised that the well-being of the people of Balochistan was the government’s top priority.
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BENGALURU: Uber announced on Tuesday a $1.25 billion deal to take over Delivery Hero’s foodpanda business in Taiwan and buy new shares in the German firm in a move that would boost liquidity of the delivery specialist grappling with rising competition in Asia.
Asia has become Delivery Hero’s biggest market after its $4 billion deal in South Korea in 2019 but the company has been trying to divest some of its assets in the region to improve profitability.
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KARACHI: Pakistan’s central bank has projected that the country’s economic growth would remain moderate, sticking to its original forecast of 2-3% growth in the ongoing fiscal year 2023-24. It says that achieving a higher growth trajectory over the medium to long run depends on reforms addressing lingering structural issues.
In its report on the ‘State of Pakistan’s Economy for the First Half of Fiscal Year 2023-24’, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said, “Despite some improvement in macroeconomic indicators, Pakistan’s economy continues to grapple with structural bottlenecks that hamper the achievement of low and stable inflation with sustainable growth. The major issues include limited savings, low investments in physical and human capital, weak productivity, stagnant exports, a narrow tax base, and inefficiencies in public sector enterprises (PSEs).”
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ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) issued a stay order till May 27 on Tuesday preventing the government from blocking mobile phone SIMs of tax non-filers.
Chief Justice Aamer Farooq led the proceedings of the petition filed by a private mobile company.
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KARACHI: Foreign portfolio investors are gradually returning to Pakistan’s debt and equity markets after a prolonged absence, marking a significant shift in market sentiment. The short-term external investment has surged by a remarkable 84%, catapulting to a 30-month high, now standing at Rs501.30 billion. According to the weekly update from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the overall investment hit rock bottom, plunging to a 12-year low of Rs272.54 billion in June 2023.
This resurgence is particularly noteworthy against the backdrop of the PSX benchmark KSE 100-Index, which soared to a new all-time high, surpassing the 74,000-point mark on Monday. This ascent contrasts sharply with its position, hovering around 61,500 points in December 2023 and a mere 40,000 points in June 2023.
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ISLAMABAD: The fate of 40 state-owned enterprises (SOEs) deemed strategic and essential by respective ministries but not accepted as such by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar remained undecided after Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb chaired a cabinet committee meeting on Monday.
The Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs) refrained from confirming the classification of these 40 enterprises as strategic assets of Pakistan, thus ineligible for privatisation. The Ministry of Finance informed the committee that the concerned ministries hadn’t furnished details regarding the companies they deemed strategic and essential.
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ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that Pakistan was keen to learn from Korea’s experience in industrialisation and small and medium enterprises’ growth as well as in the field of information technology including artificial intelligence.
The prime minister, while talking to South Korean Ambassador to Pakistan Park Ki Jun, offered to enhance the export of skilled manpower from Pakistan to meet Seoul’s needs for human resources. While expressing the desire to work closely to further strengthen bilateral ties, PM Shehbaz stressed that Pakistan and Korea were enjoying good relations, particularly in trade and investment.
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LAHORE: The Punjab Central Business District Development Authority intends to expand the scope of its expertise beyond Pakistan by participating in global infrastructure development projects, especially in the Arab states, said Chief Executive Officer of the authority Imran Amin.
“The talent and skill sets of our entire team are rare, as we are well aware of the issues which block development. I am sure no other country in the world can go through that number of development phases of any project as we do,” Amin remarked while speaking exclusively to The Express Tribune in an interview.
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KARACHI: Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Monday surged to unprecedented highs with the addition of over 700 points and at one stage crossed the 74,000 psychological barrier over optimism surrounding the outcome of loan talks between Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In the morning, the KSE-100 index endured a lacklustre start when the KSE-100 index touched the intra-day low at 73,109.76 points. Despite dropping to the day’s low very soon, the market sentiment gradually shifted towards positive cues, which lifted the index upwards.
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KARACHI: Federal Commerce Minister Jam Kamal Khan reiterated the government’s commitment to facilitating trade, industry, and export diversification on Monday. He stated that measures were being devised to promote both local and export-oriented industries.
Addressing a media briefing at the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), the commerce minister highlighted the government’s determination to bring institutional and structural reforms, resolve energy and tariff issues, enhance regional connectivity, and diversify exports to ensure sustainable growth and stabilise the economy.
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ISLAMABAD: As fertiliser manufacturers continue to exploit farmers by making unjustified price hikes, the government is striving to devise a viable gas pricing plan for the fertiliser sector.
The government has come to know that fertiliser producers had not passed on the benefit of subsidised gas to farmers.
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KARACHI: Pakistani currency on Monday ticked down Rs0.08 and closed at Rs278.20 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market as the International Monetary Fund published a detailed review report on Pakistan’s economy, indicating tough challenges ahead on the economic and political fronts.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan’s data, the rupee had closed at Rs278.12/$ on Friday.
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ISLAMABAD: The ex-depot petrol rate may decline by Rs13.40 per litre, and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs8.19 per litre for the next fortnight starting from May 16, according to an estimate.
The premium on petrol is expected to be around $10.30 per barrel, and $6.50 per barrel on HSD, while the exchange rate adjustment is expected to be 12 paisa. However, there are still three days left for the announcement of new prices.
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KARACHI: In the financial year 2024 (from July to April), passenger auto sales witnessed a significant decline to 62,962 units, marking a staggering 29% decrease. This downturn is attributed to various factors including high interest rates, soaring inflation, and diminishing purchasing power, as reported by the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association (PAMA).
PAMA’s data also revealed a sharp drop in sales of trucks and buses, plummeting to 1,747 units (down by 41%) and 371 units (a decrease of 35.3%), respectively. Similarly, sales of jeeps and pickups dwindled to 16,633 units, reflecting a decline of 37.8%. Moreover, both two and three-wheeler sales, including motorbikes and rickshaws, experienced a reduction to 941,406 units (a decrease of 6.5%).
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ISLAMABAD: In a bid to bolster tax revenues and broaden the nation's tax base, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has proposed a bold new initiative targeting non-filers.
Under the initiative, the FBR plans to implement a substantial increase in withholding tax, hiking it from 2.5 per cent to a staggering 90 per cent for non-compliant individuals.
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KARACHI: The toll from over 80% of sick units has significantly impacted all key sectors nationwide. The escalating closures of these units have left millions of skilled and semi-skilled workers, along with professionals, jobless due to the high costs of doing business, including steep gas and electricity tariffs.
The proliferation of sick units has stunted industrial growth and eroded the quality of life for workers, particularly in Karachi, a vital economic hub. This situation has contributed to a surge in street crimes and worsened law and order, exacerbating unemployment, particularly among Karachiites.
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KARACHI: In these early signs of economic stability, current policymakers often cite the increase in KSE 100 levels as a sign of investor confidence. While this is correct, many blue-chip companies are trading at a fraction of their peak dollar valuations reached during the MSCI Emerging Market-induced euphoria in 2017, as well as the post-COVID interest rate cut-led rally in the summer of 2021. Can increasing investments from retail small-ticket investors further develop the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX)?
Probably yes. In Pakistan, different estimates suggest that there are merely 200-250K active UIN accounts operating in the PSX. Out of those, only 5-10% would be trading every week (regulators or researchers can provide further details).
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ISLAMABAD: When Pakistan’s government imposed restrictions on imports to reduce the country’s trade deficit in 2022, it did not deter the inflow of goods – it encouraged substitutes and possibly smuggling, which is growing at 18% annually.
In particular, the large-scale manufacturing firms and multinational companies were negatively impacted, whereas small-scale firms and commercial importers managed to find alternative routes, often without the knowledge of the government, and at times in connivance with some elements within the state.
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LAHORE: The print, electronic and social media is replete with the handling of surplus wheat in the province of Punjab.
The soil of Punjab produces around 75% of the total wheat output in the country. The government has fixed the support price at Rs3,900 per 40 kg for this year. It has a designated corporation named Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (Passco), which buys wheat from farmers, stores it and releases the desired quantity as and when required by a deficit province.
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ISLAMABAD: The government is preparing to negotiate a new Extended Fund Facility (EFF) loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and intends to reach a staff-level agreement within the next two to three months.
The IMF asserts that the primary responsibility for selecting, designing and implementing policies lies with borrowing from member countries, not the IMF itself. It is also claimed that the overarching goal of the IMF programme is to set the stage for sustained high-quality growth and poverty reduction.
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KARACHI: Livestock experts have called for specialised farming for animals, including goats, sheep, lambs, and cows, aimed at promoting the export of live animals and meat, as the country possesses excellent potential.
They stressed the need for promoting all three types of animal farming: range farming, intensive farming, and semi-intensive farming, as well as setting up disease-free zones in hilly and Cholistan areas of the country, particularly Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, Rahim Yar Khan, and Tharparkar, among others.
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BEIJING: With the strong support of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, Douyin Pakistan Merchandise Official Pavillon held a grand opening ceremony in Shanghai, China. The event marks the beginning of a new cooperation journey between Douyin and its partners, such as the Shanghai Live Stream E-commerce Alliance, Shanghai Silk Road Selection Alliance, and Shanghai Waigaoqiao Global Hub, aiming to promote economic and cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and bring more diversified commodity choices for consumers.
At the opening ceremony, guests from government departments, industry associations, enterprise representatives, and media reporters gathered together to witness this important moment.
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BAGHDAD: Iraq was holding an oil and gas licensing round for 29 projects on Saturday in a bid to develop its huge gas reservoirs to help power the country and lure billions of dollars in investments.
The exploration blocks are spread across 12 governorates in central, southern and western Iraq and for the first time include an offshore exploration block in Iraq’s Arab Gulf waters.
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KARACHI: Solar prices have dropped by 15% to 25% due to widespread imports and increased supply relative to consumption in the country. This has made solar panels available at historically low levels in the local market for consumers. Faisal Bawani, the importer of solar panels of leading brands, told The Express Tribune that the cost of solar panels per watt has further decreased by Rs7 to Rs13 in the last four months due to the increase in supply compared to consumption. He noted that 4GW of solar panels, containing 12,000 containers, were imported into the country during 2023, while 7.5GW solar panels, containing 22,500 containers, were imported into the country from January 2024 to April 2024. As a result, the per watt prices of different types of solar panels in the local market have decreased from Rs45 and Rs53 to Rs38 and Rs40.
Market sources suggest that one reason for the decrease in the prices of solar panels is the halt in imports of solar panels from China to the United States, European countries, and India, along with the reduction of solar panel prices by 1.5 to 2 cents per watt from China.
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BEIJING: Pakistan’s cotton yarn exports to China reached $166.37 million, an increase of 65.85%, in the first quarter of 2024, according to statistics of the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC).
In the first quarter (January-March) of the current calendar year, imports of “uncombed single cotton yarn containing 85% or above” (commodity code 52051200) from Pakistan crossed $99.12 million, compared with $72.70 million in the same period of last year.
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ISLAMABAD: The Special Economic Zone (SEZ) at Rashakai, a priority zone under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) framework, has applied for licences from the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) for the distribution and supply of electricity, but the issue remains unresolved.
In a recent meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Chinese Investment Projects (CCOCIP), the Power Division stated that Chinese investors were requesting for a “pool price” of electricity instead of industrial tariff.
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WASHINGTON: US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm will visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates next week to work on “climate co-operation” and other issues, two Biden administration officials told Reuters on Friday.
The visit will run from Tuesday through Thursday, with Granholm visiting the UAE first, one of the officials said. It will be her first trip to the region as secretary.
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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is considering erecting higher walls of duties against imports of up to 1,300cc used cars and wheat aimed at discouraging their imports, which this year cost the country heavily, to the tune of about $1.4 billion in reserves and unrest among farmers.
Sources informed The Express Tribune that the government is considering two separate budget proposals regarding restoring the customs duties on the import of wheat and increasing the rates of duties on the import of used cars with up to 1,300cc engine capacity.
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