April,13(A. E Report)——Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MARI), one of Pakistan’s top energy companies, has entered into an agreement with Orient Petroleum Inc (OPI), an exploration and production company, for the provision of Early Production Facilities (EPF) on a turn-key basis for Shewa-I Discovery in Waziristan Block.MARI shared the development in a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Thursday that OPI will “provide operations and maintenance (O&M) services for a period of twenty-four months from the start of production,” read the notice. The contract also has a provision for MARI to purchase the EPF equipment.Last year in June, MARI announced the discovery of gas & condensate at Shewa-I (formerly Bannu West-...
April 13, 2023 at 3:29 pm | Economic Affairs
April,13(Agencies)——China’s coal imports surged in March to their highest in any month over the past three years as utilities increased purchases on expectations for a demand recovery and after curbs on bringing in Australian coal were removed.World’s top coal consumer brought in 41.17 million tonnes last month, the highest level since January 2020, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Thursday.That compares to an average of 30.32 million tonnes per month in the January-February period, and represents an increase of 151% from March last year.For the first quarter of 2023, China imported a total of 101.8 million tonnes of coal, nearly doubling from a low base last year, the data showed.Coal demand in China being...
April 13, 2023 at 2:55 pm | Economic Affairs
April,13(Agencies)——UK economy unexpectedly stalled in February with the country facing more strikes as a cost-of-living crisis erodes the value of wages, official data showed Thursday.The zero-growth performance followed a 0.4-percent expansion in January, the Office for National Statistics said, while the latest reading was worse than analyst expectations.Darren Morgan, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said public-sector strikes including by teachers hit output, while “unseasonably mild weather led to falls in the use of electricity and gas”.However, construction picked up after a “poor” January and retail won a boost as many shops had a “buoyant month”, he added. Britain’s economy had rebounded in January...
April 13, 2023 at 2:53 pm | Economic Affairs
April,13(A. E Report)—— Pak Suzuki Motor Company (PSMC) has announced of extending it motorcycle plant shut until April 28th. Decision was made due to the ongoing import restrictions that have affected the auto sector, causing a shortage of inventory.“Due to shortage of inventory level… the management of the company has decided to extend shutdown period of its motorcycle plant till April 28, 2023,” read a notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX).Earlier this month, PSMC had already shut down its motorcycle plant from April 04 to April 15 due to a lack of raw materials. Meanwhile, the automobile plant was shut from April 07 to April 14.PMSC is the assembler, manufacturer, and marketer of Suzuki cars, pickups, vans, 4x4s and mot...
April 13, 2023 at 1:38 pm | Economic Affairs
April,12(Agencies)—— U.S. stock indexes were higher on Wednesday on raising hopes that the Federal Reserve could hit pause on its interest rate hiking cycle soon as data showed consumer prices cooled faster than expected in March.The Labor Department data showed headline and core CPI in March rose 0.1% and 0.4%, respectively, on a month-on-month basis. Economists were expecting a rise of 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.Investors are also awaiting the first-quarter earnings season, which begins in earnest on Friday with results from three major banks, Citigroup Inc, JPMorgan Chase & Co and Wells Fargo & Co.At 9:58 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 155.96 points, or 0.46%, at 33,840.75, the S&P 500 was up 13.20 poi...
April 12, 2023 at 10:36 pm | Economic Affairs
April,12(A. E Report)—— Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed a bullish intra-day session with over 300 points increase where benchmark KSE-100 index was hovering above the 40,000 level at mid-day, the benchmark index was being traded at 40,127.97, an increase of 323.26 points or 0.81%.Buying across-the-board was witnessed with the index-heavy sectors including, automobile, cement, chemical, commercial banks, pharmaceuticals and refinery trading in the green.Experts said that the improvement in market sentiments comes amid reports that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is likely to confirm financing of $1 billion in the coming days.Minister of State for Finance, Dr Aisha Ghaus Pasha said a day earlier of Saudi Arabia assurance to Intern...
April 12, 2023 at 4:26 pm | Economic Affairs
April,12(A. E Report)——Pakistani rupee recovered some ground against US dollar a day after plunging to all-time lows by appreciating 0.63% in inter-bank market Wednesday.According to State Bank(SBP), local currency settled at 286.62 with an increase of Rs1.81.That comes a day after where rupee dipped to a new all-time low against the US dollar, settling at 288.43 in the inter-bank market after a loss of Rs1.34 or 0.46%.Market experts attributed the fall towards lack of developments on the resumption of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program, which has remained stalled since last year. Resumption of the IMF program is crucial for cash-strapped South Asian economy, which is battling high inflation and low foreign exchange reserves...
April 12, 2023 at 4:26 pm | Economic Affairs
April,11(A. E Report)—— Pakistani rupee took a significant dip of 0.85 percent by opening week against US dollar in inter-bank market and closed at 287.09, down 2.44.Rupee depreciated 0.3% to close at 284.65 last week. The currency fell in four of five sessions with the only gain being on Thursday, the day when a finance ministry official said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had indicated that it has gotten a financing assurance from Saudi Arabia.On Saturday, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said the staff-level agreement between Pakistan and the IMF was taking time solely because of delay in confirmation of funding from a friendly country.The financing confirmation would bridge Pakistan's external account gap and meet the last conditi...
April 10, 2023 at 7:54 pm | Economic Affairs
April,11(Agencies)—— Malaysian palm oil futures dropped for a fourth session on Monday due to the absence of fresh destination buying, which hurt market sentiments, despite a tighter supply situation at origins.The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange dropped 0.11% to 3,790 ringgit ($860.00) per tonne by the midday break, extending a 4.26% loss over the past three sessions.“BMD crude palm oil futures opened lower following weakness in Dalian palm olein and soyoil futures and in expectations of a drop in Malaysian palm oil export between April 1-10,” said Anilkumar Bagani, research head of Mumbai-based vegetable oils broker Sunvin Group.Data released during midday break showed Mala...
April 10, 2023 at 7:53 pm | Economic Affairs
April,11(Agencies)—— Most emerging Asian currencies eased on Monday after strong US payrolls data released last week cemented the case for another rate hike by the Federal Reserve and dampened risk sentiment.Thai baht weakened 0.7% and Malaysia’s ringgit slipped 0.2%, while the Indonesian rupiah and the Philippine peso were largely unchanged.United States, the world’s largest economy, increased jobs at a brisk clip in March, data showed on Friday, signalling labour market resilience that is expected to keep the Fed on track to raise interest rates one more time next month.“The string of data thus far suggests that the US is slowing and an environment global growth convergence should weaken the USD even without a rate cut this yea...
April 10, 2023 at 7:52 pm | Economic Affairs
April,07(A. E Report)—— Pak Rupee moved back to losing zone while depreciating slightly against US dollar in the inter-bank market on Friday despite a slight recovery in early hours.According to State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the local currency closed at 284.65, down 0.23 or 0.08 percent.A day earl, Rupee registered significant gains against the US dollar, settling at 284.42 in the inter-bank market after a gain of Rs3.43 or 1.21%, on the back of news that the IMF has received assurance from Saudi Arabia of helping out Pakistan. The IMF is seeking such assurances before it revives its bailout programme for the South Asian country.Minister of State for Finance Aisha Ghaus Pasha on Thursday informed that Saudi Arabia has told the lender i...
April 9, 2023 at 4:31 am | Economic Affairs
April,07(Agencies)—— Malaysian palm oil futures inched down on Friday to a one-week closing low, weighed by weakness in Dalian rival oils, although the contract clocked a weekly rise on expectation of tightening supply.The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange closed down 23 ringgit, or 0.6%, to 3,800 ringgit ($863.44) a tonne.For the week, palm has risen 1.04%, advancing for a second consecutive week.Spot month was holding firm reflecting support on physical side, but far months were showing weakness because market sentiment is weak, a Kuala Lumpur-based trader said.Investors are awaiting Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) data due on Monday to determine further price direction.A Reuters...
April 9, 2023 at 4:30 am | Economic Affairs
April,07(A. E Report)—— Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) has signed a $240-million loan agreement with government to support Mohmand Multipurpose Dam Project.According to SFD statement, the Kingdom’s agency that provides development assistance to developing countries, the Mohmand Multipurpose Dam Project will enhance water and food security, and improve the standard of living for people living in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.The project, which is co-financed by the SFD, OPEC, Islamic Development Bank, and the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development, aligns with some of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). These include food security, clean water and clean energy.The project is expected to have a significant im...
April 9, 2023 at 4:29 am | Economic Affairs
April,07(A. E Report)—— KSE-100 Index fell 0.75 percent Friday following reports circulated regarding Finance Minister Ishaq Dar pulling out of his visit to World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) spring meetings shattered investor sentiment.Talks on resumption of the stalled IMF programme were expected from the visit and hence, the sudden cancellation impacted trading at the PSX. At close, the KSE-100 Index settled at 40,049.65, a decrease of 301.24 points or 0.75 percent.Trading began upward but selling pressure emerged that erased the gain. The market fell steadily for the rest of the day and closed with a loss.Automobile, cement, chemical, banking and oil sectors saw a selloff and closed in the red.A report from Capital St...
April 9, 2023 at 4:26 am | Economic Affairs
April,05(A. E Report)—— Pakistani rupee hit a new record low on Wednesday amid ongoing political uncertainty in addition of inability to revive the crucial International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee closed at 287.85, a loss of Re0.56 or 0.19%. Earlier during the day the currency had touched 288.25 against the greenback.This comes a day after the rupee hit a new historic low of 287.29 in the inter-bank market after a decline of Rs2.25 or 0.8%.In a key development that took place after markets closed on Tuesday, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the SBP announced it was raising the policy rate by 100 basis points (bps) to an all-time high level of 21% to curtail rising inflation.It...
April 5, 2023 at 9:08 pm | Economic Affairs
April,05(Agencies)—— Malaysian palm oil futures slipped on Wednesday after touching a near three-week high the previous day, although a forecast of shrinking stockpiles limited the losses.The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange slid 56 ringgit, or 1.41%, to 3,910 ringgit ($889.85) a tonne by the midday break. The contract had risen 5.45% in the last two sessions.Palm prices are expected to recover, supported by positive fundamentals and external markets, Refinitiv Commodities Research said in a note.“Earlier, heavy rains and floods in Malaysia had resulted in weaker output, while Indonesia’s export restrictions prompted buyers to turn towards the Malaysian palm oil supply,” it ...
April 5, 2023 at 9:07 pm | Economic Affairs
Pakistan Rupee Exchange Rate