Pakistan

LAHORE: The public at large, trade unions, associations and civil society groups have widely criticised the government for once again increasing the petrol and diesel prices and sought withdrawal of the decision with immediate effect. They also expressed concerns over the increasing price hike of commodities, transportation and other charges due to repeated increases in the petroleum prices. “With this increase of nearly Rs27 per litre, petrol has now crossed Rs393, almost reaching Rs400. So how can common people, who are already passing through immense financial stress, survive in such a terrible situation,” commented a motorist while talking to Dawn at a petrol pump in Gulberg. “We were expecting a reduction in the POL prices but the increase surprised us. This is highhandedness with the public at large,” he deplored while lashing out at the government. Fresh increase challenged in high court On Friday, the government announced a hike in the prices of petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs26.77 each due t...

• CKD imports surge to $1.47bn in 9MFY26 • Vendors slam low local parts use KARACHI: New auto players appear reluctant to share the localisation in their vehicle assembly operations, while local vendors continue to complain about the negligible localisation by the new entrants. As the current auto policy is expiring on June 30, vendors claim that the new entrants have not given any clear signal about future local assembly of parts, while some big vendors might have inked deals with them to assemble a few parts. Some assemblers already have parts-making factories, utilise their parts for their own vehicles, and sell parts to other assemblers. According to official data, imports of semi- and completely knocked-down (SKD/CKD) components by assemblers have surged by 116 per cent to $1.47bn in 9MFY26 year on year (YoY), while the import bill for auto accessories from FY22 to 9MFY26 has crossed $6bn, suggesting lukewarm efforts towards higher localisation. As new entrants did not respond to the request of sharing l...

KARACHI: It appears that the financial market is certain that the interest rate is bound to see a rise in the next monetary policy scheduled for Monday. At the same time, most experts believed that it was not inflation but the growing fears in the region, including Pakistan, due to the Gulf war, that would determine the direction of monetary policy. “The risks in the Gulf war are unseen and so uncertain that nobody can claim that the economy of Pakistan and other countries like it would remain in the same shape as it is now,” said a financial expert. He added that inflation could entirely change the economy, with greater uncertainty, in the form of a sharp decline in manufacturing and a further increase in existing poverty. Experts see 100bps hike in SBP committee’s meeting on Monday The short-term inflation hit 14 per cent during the week that ended on April 23, reflecting the mood of headline inflation. The government has again increased diesel and petroleum prices, an approach to shield against possible fu...

• Iran asks US to lift blockade, warns of response if ‘piracy’ continues • Macron wants full reopening of strait in ‘coming days and weeks’ • Turkiye, Germany agree to de-mining missions TEHRAN/ANKARA: As a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by the US and Iran led to energy shortages, efforts were afoot to restore freedom of navigation in the vital maritime route, with multiple countries offering to de-mine the strait once peace was restored. After the US and Israel attacked Iran on Feb 28, Tehran responded by shutting down the strait and later announced it would charge vessels using the maritime route. The US earlier this month blockaded Iranian ports to stop its oil exports and returned over 30 ships leaving Iranian ports. Despite an extension in a recent ceasefire between the two, Hormuz remained a flashpoint, proving a major hurdle in the resumption of talks. Iran’s military said it would respond if the US maintained its blockade of Iranian ports, calling it “banditry” and “piracy”. In a statement carried b...

ISLAMABAD: A recent survey titled “Cybersecurity in the Workplace: Emp­loyee Knowledge and Behaviour” shows that 39pc of professionals in Pakistan consider their company’s cybersecurity rules excessive or not fully appropriate, while 8pc say their organisations either lack such rules or they are unaware of them. The survey, conducted by cybersecurity company Kaspersky, highlights a disconnect between corporate policies and emp­loyee adherence, underscoring risks link­­ed to shadow IT and unmanaged device usage. According to the report, 38pc of respon­dents said there are no policies governing the use of non-corporate devices. Mean­while, 17pc admitted they can use personal devices to access business information if these have some form of cybersecurity protection, even consumer-grade software. On the positive side, 16pc said personal devices must pass stringent corporate IT security checks before use, while 29pc reported that only company-issued devices are permitted for work. The situation is relatively bette...

MOSCOW - Consultations on the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s international activities and regional security were held at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers of SCO member States in Moscow, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

An Iranian delegation led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Islamabad on Saturday after meeting with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) and army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir. However, Iranian state media said Araghchi will head back to Pakistan after visiting Oman. The IRNA news agency, citing the foreign ministry, reported that Araghchi “is scheduled to visit Pakistan again after completing his trip to Oman and before travelling to Russia”. Part of his delegation had returned to Tehran, it added, “to consult and obtain the necessary instructions on issues related to ending the war, and is scheduled to rejoin Araghchi in Islamabad on Sunday night”. At the same time, US President Donald Trump cancelled the visit of US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who were expected to depart for Pakistan later in the day for talks with Iran. Araghchi’s meetings The Iranian foreign minister termed his visit to Pakistan “very fruitful”. In a post on X, he said, “Very fruitful visit ...

Four dead as Lebanon truce crumbles

• Scraps US team trip to Pakistan • Says cancellation does not signal return to fighting • Traffic through Strait r

Twin cities roll again as travel curbs end

PM Shehbaz vows to leave no stone unturned for US-Iran peace

K-P CM tells AJK rally this time the entire Pakistan will come out against govt policies

Satellite successfully enters its planned orbit

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First passengers left for Medina, Muscat and Istanbul; operations set to speed up soon

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Nearly 1.5m people are registered to cast ballot in West Bank

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