India’s batters have the skills and experience needed to navigate the challenge of playing on a tricky pitch in New York, batting coach Vikram Rathour said after their Twenty20 World Cup victory over Ireland on Wednesday. India captain Rohit Sharma led from the front with an impressive half-century to guide his team to an eight-wicket victory over Ireland in their opening group match. However, batters found it tough going, with the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium’s drop-in pitch offering a lot of movement and bounce, leading to a low-scoring match after Ireland were bundled out for 96 with four overs to spare. “It was a…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) and the Pakistan Stock Brokers Association (PSBA) have expressed concerns over high capital market taxation and demanded its rationalisation in their budget proposals. The PSX has said that the bourse has recently seen an upsurge in its performance and the market capitalisation has increased by almost Rs4 trillion in the outgoing fiscal year. Foreign inflows amounting to $132 million were invested in the country through the stock market in the current fiscal year. “The Ministry of Finance and the FBR must consider the proposals presented by PSX to ensure that the stock market continues to contribute…
ISLAMABAD: Braving the highest-ever electricity tariff, hapless consumers seeking instalments to pay heavy bills because of financial difficulties are now legally bound to pay a 14 per cent markup on delayed payments and will be disqualified from subsequent part-payment facilities for a year. This is in addition to a 10pc late payment surcharge (LPS) if a bill is not paid within the deadline prescribed on the consumer bill. The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has notified this through an amendment in the Consumer Service Manual (CSM) on the demand of the Power Division and its subordinate distribution companies (Discos),…
LAHORE: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmed chaired the first Steering Committee meeting on Wednesday to implement priority sector initiatives recommended by the Pakistan Banks’ Association (PBA). The meeting focused on enhancing support from the banking industry in three key sectors: agriculture, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and digital technology. The meeting followed an earlier discussion chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb last month, during which he had urged the banking sector to extend its full support to the government in operationalising its strategic economic priorities regarding these sectors. The SBP governor said, “Our goal is to create a robust…
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have signed 32 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) to promote trade and investment between the two countries. The MoUs were signed during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to China. He is leading a team of 100 businessmen to explore the potential for promoting bilateral trade and investment. An official announcement of the Commerce Ministry released on Wednesday said that Minister for Board of Investment Aleem Khan and Minister of Commerce Jam Kamal met with the CEOs of major Chinese enterprises. Aleem said that this is the best opportunity for the Pakistani business community to tap their Chinese companions…
VIENNA: The UN nuclear watchdog’s 35-nation board of governors passed a resolution on Wednesday calling on Iran to step up cooperation with the watchdog and reverse its recent barring of inspectors, despite concerns Tehran would respond with atomic escalation. Twenty countries voted in favour and two against — Russia and China — with 12 abstentions. It follows up on the last resolution 18 months ago that asked Iran to comply with a years-long International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) investigation into uranium traces found at undeclared sites. “The need for the board to hold Iran accountable to its legal obligations is long overdue.…
NEW YORK: Humankind’s role in the destructive warming of the planet is the equivalent to the meteorite that wiped out dinosaurs from Earth, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a speech on climate change on Wednesday. “Like the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs, we’re having an outsized impact,” Guterres said in a speech at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. “In the case of climate, we are not the dinosaurs. We are the meteor. We are not only in danger. We are the danger.” Last month was the hottest May ever recorded and the 12th straight…
PARIS: Slovenia has followed suit of Spain, Ireland and Norway by recognising the state of Palestine, breaking with the long-held view of Western powers that Palestinians can gain statehood “only as part of a negotiated peace with Israel”. With the latest addition, 146 of the 193 UN member states now recognise a Palestinian state including most Middle Eastern, African, Latin American and Asian countries. In April, the US used its veto at the UNSC to prevent a Palestinian bid to become a full UN member state. After Slovenia’s vote on Tuesday, Prime Minister Robert Golob wrote on X that the recognition “sends…
WASHINGTON: When US President Joe Biden publicly aired a Gaza ceasefire proposal developed by Israel and the United States and sent to Hamas, he made the announcement without seeking agreement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said three US officials with knowledge of the matter. The decision to announce unilaterally — an unusual step for the United States to take with a close ally — was deliberate, officials say and narrowed the room for Israel or Hamas to back away from the deal. “We didn’t ask permission to announce the proposal,” said a senior US official. “We informed the Israelis we were…
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was on Wednesday elected as the leader of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), but uneasy lies the head that wears the crown. Two crucial conditions have surfaced on the wish list of Mr Modi’s strongly independent allies, whose support he needs to shore up his minority government. The demands, if pressed would bear resemblance to the UK Chartist Movement, which aimed to overthrow king, queen and parliament, but here it seems more rooted in realpolitik than the British legend was. In the meantime, Mr Modi submitted his resignation, along with his council of ministers, to President…
