ISLAMABAD: Oil prices tumbled on hopes of a breakthrough in the stand-off over the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, even as the vital waterway remained shut to shipping and a Greek-operated bulk carrier was hit by an unidentified projectile, forcing its crew to abandon ship with one seafarer missing.
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Pakistan escapes new US visa bond scheme requiring up to $20,000 deposit
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has not been included on a list of 50 countries whose citizens may now be required to pay a financial bond of up to $20,000 before they can obtain a US visitor visa, under a scheme that the Trump administration has just converted from a temporary pilot into permanent policy.
Ten more killed in Pakistan floods as authorities warn of fresh deluge
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s monsoon death toll has climbed to 136 after 10 more people were killed in rain-related incidents over the past 24 hours, as flash floods swept away three schoolgirls walking home from school and authorities warned of further heavy rainfall in the days ahead.
Pakistan cotton arrivals jump 32 percent as Sindh offsets Punjab slump
ISLAMABAD: Cotton arrivals at the ginning factories surged more than 32% in the season through July 31, as a record jump in Sindh province more than compensated for a decline in Punjab, historically the country’s dominant cotton-growing region.
PPP chief warns PML-N its ‘countdown has begun’ amid Kashmir vote row
ISLAMABAD: Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party, has issued his most pointed threat yet against the government of which his own party is a member, telling the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz that its “countdown has begun” and that the PPP’s campaign for public rights will now be carried “across the entire” country.
Govt slashes petrol price by 4.08 rupees as global oil retreats
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan cut retail fuel prices for a second straight period on Monday, with petrol falling 4.08 rupees a liter and diesel dropping 2.45 rupees, as the government passed through a retreat in global oil prices triggered by President Donald Trump’s decision to shelve a planned strike on Iran.
PM Sharif orders faster privatisation push, eyes private equity fund for growth
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered ministries overseeing the sale of state assets to hit every deadline in the government’s privatization program, as officials reported progress on transactions ranging from the national airline to regional power utilities.
AJK election body says PML-N wins 14 of 18 seats as coalition ally PPP cries foul
MUZAFFARABAD: Pakistan’s ruling party moved a step closer to forming the next government in Azad Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, after unofficial results from the second phase of the territory’s legislative elections handed the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz 14 of the 18 seats declared, extending a lead that has now drawn sustained allegations of rigging from its main rival — and coalition partner in Islamabad — the Pakistan Peoples Party.
Iran insists Pakistan remains lead mediator with US, as Trump threatens Tehran with ‘total surrender’
ISLAMABAD: Iran on Monday moved to quash speculation that China had stepped in as a mediator with the United States, insisting that Pakistan remains the principal channel for indirect contacts between Tehran and Washington, even as President Donald Trump accused the Islamic Republic of “duplicity” for denying that talks were taking place.
Pakistani Taliban claims Swat police station bombing that killed 17
SWAT: The death toll from a suicide bombing outside a police station in Swat Valley rose to 17 on Monday, as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility for an attack that struck during a rally against lawlessness in the restive region.