ISLAMABA: The government on Thursday extended the utilization period under the Export Facilitation Scheme to 18 months from nine, a change officials say will lower costs for shippers and give particular relief to small and medium-sized enterprises.
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Opposition leaders again turned away from Imran Khan jail visit
ISLAMABAD: The opposition figures were once again barred from meeting imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday, an episode that deepened anxieties over his health and prompted sharp accusations that the government is deliberately obscuring details about the longtime political leader’s condition.
Hormuz chokepoint risks hit Gulf LNG-dependent Pakistan hardest in South Asia, CFR warns
KARACHI: Pakistan is among the Asian economies most at risk of rapid energy shortages if disruptions to Gulf shipping continue, according to analysis from energy data provider Kpler, the Council on Foreign Relations and reporting by the Financial Times.
Imran Khan’s ex-wife accuses authorities of pushing sons to travel on NICOP without British consular protection
ISLAMABAD: Jemima Goldsmith, the former wife of imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan, accused the Pakistani government on Thursday of deliberately refusing to issue visas to her two sons so that any visit would leave them without British consular protection.
PM Sharif appeals for fuel savings to head Off supply risks from Middle East turmoil
ISLAMABAD: The government called on the public on Thursday to step up fuel-conservation efforts, warning that supplies of petroleum products could come under pressure in the coming days as instability in the Middle East intensifies.
Pakistan rejects US intelligence chief’s warning that its missiles could reach American homeland
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday categorically rejected a US intelligence assessment that its evolving missile program could one day threaten the American homeland, insisting its strategic arsenal remains strictly defensive, limited in range and focused exclusively on deterring its nuclear-armed rival India.
Army chief vows to target militants “wherever they are”
RAWALPINDI: Pakistan’s top military commander on Thursday reiterated the nation’s determination to eliminate terrorists and their infrastructure “wherever they may be” through precise, intelligence-based operations, even as the government announced a temporary pause in its ongoing offensive against the Afghan Taliban to observe the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
Pakistan digital payments hit record 92 percent of retail transactions as cashless shift accelerates
KARACHI: Pakistan accelerated its shift toward a cashless economy in the second quarter of fiscal 2026, with digital channels accounting for 92% of all retail transactions, up from 88% a year earlier, the State Bank of Pakistan said.
US intelligence chief places Pakistan among nations whose missiles could reach American homeland
WASHINGTON: Director of US National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told Congress on Wednesday that Pakistan is among a handful of nations whose advancing missile capabilities could one day place the US homeland in range, a stark assessment that groups Islamabad with Russia, China, North Korea and Iran in the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment.
At least 17 dead as storms and gale-force winds batter Karachi, collapsing walls and uprooting trees
KARACHI: At least 17 people were killed and more than a dozen injured on Wednesday night when heavy rain, thunderstorms and winds gusting as high as 97 kilometers per hour slammed into Karachi, toppling walls and roofs, striking victims with lightning and leaving trees strewn across streets in Pakistan’s largest city.