KARACHI: Pakistan’s central government debt surged 12% to Rs76.05 trillion in May from a year earlier, intensifying fiscal strains on South Asia’s second-largest economy.
Top Stories
Nine militants killed in separate raids in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
ISLAMABAD: Security forces killed nine militants in coordinated raids across three cities on Saturday, thwarting what officials described as imminent attacks on civilian and law enforcement targets.
Microsoft to close direct operations in Pakistan after 25 years, shifting to partner-led model
KARACHI: Microsoft Corp. is shutting down its direct operations in Pakistan after a 25-year presence, opting to serve the market through resellers and regional offices, a move the company described as a strategic shift to a partner-led model amid a global pivot to cloud-based services.
Pakistan signals conditional openness to extraditing terror suspects to India
ISLAMABAD: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and former foreign minister, said on Friday that Pakistan would not object to extraditing individuals of concern to India, such as Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar, as a confidence-building measure, provided New Delhi cooperates in the legal process.
Pakistan, US near trade pact to shield exports from Trump tariffs
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United States have concluded a critical round of trade negotiations, reaching an understanding on an agreement that could prevent the re-imposition of a 29 percent tariff on Pakistani exports, Dawn newspaper reported on Saturday.
Lyari building collapse leaves 14 dead, lays bare Karachi’s deepening housing crisis
KARACHI: The air was thick with dust and desperation on Friday morning when a five-story residential building in Karachi’s crowded Lyari neighborhood crumbled years of unheeded warnings, killing at least 14 people and entombing dozens more in a pile of concrete and grief.
Pakistan grapples with LNG glut as Qatar deal backfires
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is wrestling with a costly oversupply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from a second long-term deal with Qatar, originally intended to shore up energy security but now forcing the government to weigh revising the agreement.
Pakistan kills 30 terrorists in border clash with Afghan infiltrators
ISLAMABAD: Security forces killed 30 terrorists attempting to cross into the country from Afghanistan, the military said Friday, in a deadly clash in the volatile North Waziristan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Pakistan appoints financial advisers for ZTBL privatisation
ISLAMABAD: The government has tapped a consortium led by Next Capital Limited as financial advisers to oversee the sale of Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL), a state-owned agricultural lender, according to an official statement.
Czech mountaineer Kolouchova dies on treacherous Nanga Parbat
ISLAMABAD: A Czech climber has died after falling between Camp 1 and Camp 2 during an expedition on Nanga Parbat, one of the world’s most treacherous peaks, officials in Pakistan’s Diamer district confirmed said on Thursday.