The fate of several senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and party workers will be decided tomorrow, as a Lahore Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) prepares to hand down verdicts in two major cases stemming from the May 9 unrest. Cases Tied to Arson and Police Clashes The rulings cover two separate incidents: the torching of Shadman police…
Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) is facing a severe cash crunch as unpaid bills from the power sector pile up to over Rs76.5 billion, according to figures shared with Business Recorder. More than two-thirds of the outstanding amount—about Rs50.4 billion—is owed by power plants run by the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA). Guddu…
Iran Air has officially begun direct passenger flights between Quetta, Pakistan, and Zahedan, Iran, in a move aimed at strengthening regional connectivity. The maiden flight, an Airbus A-319, touched down at Quetta International Airport on Friday night at 9:15 p.m. After a two-hour layover, it departed for Zahedan — the capital of Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan province…
Pakistan is preparing a sweeping piece of legislation — the so-called Digital Bill — aimed at bringing order to its fast-growing but loosely regulated online marketplace. The draft law will cover digital marketing, e-commerce, and consumer protection, with particular focus on curbing anti-competitive practices and online fraud. The move comes after the Competition Commission of…
Pakistan’s National Grid Company (NGC) has urged the federal government to step in and help settle a long-standing $3.65 million payment dispute with Iranian engineering firm GAM ARAK — a case tied to an international arbitration ruling that remains unpaid five years on. According to internal correspondence dated July 17, 2025, NGC recommended that the…
In a bold move to reshape Pakistan’s economic landscape, the federal government has introduced a five-year strategy to privatise 24 state-owned enterprises (SOEs), laying them out across three distinct phases. The plan, disclosed in Parliament by Privatisation Minister Abdul Aleem Khan, signals a decisive shift away from decades of state control in key sectors. First…
In a significant boost to Pakistan’s fiscal reform agenda, the World Bank is preparing to greenlight a $600 million loan to support the country’s efforts to overhaul how public money is spent and managed. The funding is set to kick off the first phase of a five-year federal initiative aimed at making development more inclusive…
ISLAMABAD – In a move aimed at closing gaps between what banks report as income and what they actually pay taxes on, Pakistan’s Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has overhauled key tax provisions for the banking sector. The changes, set to take effect from July 1, 2025, are part of the broader Finance Act 2025…
In a move that offers stability to Pakistan’s tech industry, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has confirmed that the withholding tax rate for Information Technology (IT) and IT-enabled services will stay at 4% for the fiscal year 2025-26. This decision comes despite a broader increase in withholding tax rates affecting various other service categories….
ISLAMABAD — The vast majority of Pakistan’s farmers now operate on increasingly smaller plots of land, according to new data from the 2024 Agricultural Census — a trend that experts warn could undermine the country’s agricultural productivity and long-term food security. The latest figures show that 97% of Pakistani farmers now own less than 12.5…