Category: Affairs

Samba Bank has appointed a Saudi women banker, Kholood K. AI-Khelaiwi, as Non-executive Director.

She will replace Ali Muhammad Mahoon, the former President and CEO of MCB Bank, who resigned recently from his position.

According to the stock filing, the board is pleased to approve the appointment of Ms. Kholood K. AI-Khelaiwi as Non-Executive Director on the board of Samba Bank Limited for the remainder of the period. Her appointment shall be effective subject to the State Bank of Pakistan (“SBP”) approval/clearance.

The new director has been serving at The Saudi National Bank in different capacities since 2020. She is presently working as head of trading for global markets at The Saudi National Bank

With her addition to the board, the representation of The Saudi National Bank and women board members increased on the board of Samba Bank Limited. The Chairman of the board, Mustafa Ilays, and the directors.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The price of gold in Pakistan increased by Rs. 7,700 per tola during the outgoing week to close at Rs. 234,500 per tola.

According to the data released by the All-Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA), the price of gold (24 carats) dropped by Rs. 1,000 per tola to Rs. 234,500.

The increase in price of the precious metal has been largely down to the rupee’s depreciation against the US dollar. The rupee is currently down to its all-time low of 301 against the US dollar.

This is the second consecutive increase in the price of gold on a weekly basis. Last week the price of gold had increased by Rs. 5,000 per tola. This means that in the last two weeks, gold has gained nearly Rs. 13,000 per tola.

According to gold traders, skyrocketing inflation means that currently, the market is seeing very few buyers while up to 80 percent of people who are visiting the gold markets these days are looking to sell gold, just to make ends meet.

Source: Pro Pakistani

Interim Commerce Minister Dr Gohar Ejaz has urged textile exporters to shift their focus on the value-added products, including garments, to achieve the $80 billion export target.

Talking to leading exporting during his visit to the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) House on Saturday, the minister pledged to address concerns and challenges faced by entrepreneurs.

The minister also assured exporters of providing comprehensive assistance through the ministry’s trade and investment officers stationed in various international missions.

During the meeting, the importance of establishing efficient banking channels for seamless trade, particularly with Central Asian countries, was highlighted. The minister said this aligns with the government’s commitment to cultivating robust economic connections with nations in that region, further expanding Pakistan’s trade horizons.

The commerce minister added that his ministry was devising a plan to boost exports by extending all-out support to the industry stakeholders.

Talking to the media, he said that he had informed industrialists about his vision to increase Pakistan’s global exports to $80 billion, saying that the commerce ministry was vigorously preparing the framework, where special focus would be strategic export markets and potential products.

The EU-27 zone is the largest export destination for Pakistani businesses and the continuation of the GSP scheme will assist Pakistan, he added.

Source: Pro Pakistani

Employees of electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) consumed free electricity worth Rs. 8.19 billion in 2022, according to Senator Mushtaq Ahmed.

In a post on X, the Senator highlighted that according to data provided by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA), power sector employees consumed 340 million free electricity units. As many as 189,000 employees benefited from free electricity units, he added.

The Senator also said that in the last 15 months, monetary losses on account of power theft have cost the country Rs. 500 billion. The Senator also highlighted that action was taken against 743 power sector employees for facilitating the theft of electricity.

Out of those who faced action, 422 belonged to Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (HESCO), 124 were working for Multan Electric Power Company (MEPCO), while 118 were employees of Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO).

How much free electricity do employees get?

According to Ahmed, Grade 16 officers are given 300 free units every month, Grade 17 officers get 450 units and Grade 18 officials are provided with 600 units every month.

Grade 19 and Grade 20 officers are provided with 880 units and 1,110 units respectively, while Grade 21 and 22 get 1,300 free units every month.

Source: Pro Pakistani

Islamabad Electric Supply Company has offered its customers the option of paying their electricity bills on installment.

In a statement, the IESCO Chief Executive, Dr Muhammad Amjad Khan directed all offices of the company to offer the convenience of electricity bill installment plans to visiting customers.

He said if the customers have any inquiries about their electricity bills, they can contact the relevant Sub-Divisional Office, Revenue Office or Customer Service Centers.

The company made the offer amid protest against heavy billing.

Source: Radio Pakistan

The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI)-based inflation for the week ended August 24, 2023, increased by 0.05 percent due to an increase in the prices of food items and non-food items, says the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

The year-on-year trend depicts an increase of 25.34 percent mainly due to increase in the prices of wheat flour (129 percent), gas charges for Q1 (108 percent), cigarettes (102 percent), tea lipton (94 percent), rice basmati broken (89 percent), chilies powder (86 percent), sugar (81 percent), rice irri-6/9 (80 percent), gur (63 percent), salt powdered (49 percent), chicken (48.5 percent) and bread (46 percent), while decrease was observed in the prices of tomatoes (40 percent), onions (37.7 percent), electricity for Q1 (22 percent), pulse masoor (10.68 percent) and vegetable ghee 1 kg (0.40 percent).

During the week, out of 51 items, prices of 22 (43.14percent) items increased, 12 (25.53percent) items decreased and 17 (33.33percent) of items remained stable.

Some of the items, which recorded an increase in their average prices during the week over the previous include onions (23.56 percent), pulse masoor (3.66 percent), sugar (3.43 percent), garlic (2.17 percent), eggs (2.13 percent), cooked daal (2.04 percent), pulse mash (1.52 percent), cooked beef (1.50 percent), gur (1.10 percent), toilet soap (0.82 percent), pulse moong (0.58 percent), rice basmati broken (0.56 percent), milk fresh (0.42 percent), mutton (0.26 percent) and tea prepared (0.19 percent).

Selected items, which recorded a decrease in their average prices during the week over the previous include tomatoes (22.16 percent), chicken (5.44 percent), rice irri-6/9 (1.70 percent), potatoes (1.43 percent), bananas (1.22 percent), mustard oil (0.87 percent), pulse gram (0.49 percent), LPG (0.43 percent), and wheat flour bag 20 kg (0.25 percent).

Source: Pro Pakistani

Mari Petroleum Company Limited (PSX: MARI) has received an exploration license for mineral extraction in Balochistan, the company informed the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Friday.

“The Directorate General Mines and Minerals Balochistan has granted an Exploration License (EL-186) and allotted an area of 501 sq. km to Mari Petroleum Company Limited (PSX: MARI) for mineral extraction near Dalbandin, District Chagai, Balochistan,” the filing stated.

“This is in line with the MPCL’s strategy to diversify into near core areas and its commitment to contributing to the growth of the mineral mining sector of Pakistan,” the filing added.

Mari Petroleum Company Limited is a public limited company incorporated in Pakistan on December 4, 1984, under the repealed Companies Ordinance, 1984. MPCL is principally engaged in the exploration, production, and sale of hydrocarbons.

At the time of filing, the company’s scrip at the bourse was Rs. 1,670, up 0.86 percent or Rs. 14.18 with a turnover of 108,476 shares on Friday.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The price of gold in Pakistan remained unchanged on Thursday at Rs. 232,600 per tola.

According to the data released by the All-Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA), the price of gold (24 carats) stood at Rs. 232,600 while the price of 10 grams remained at Rs. 199,417.

Barring yesterday’s decline, the price of the precious metal has been on an upward trend for the past many days.

In the opening two days of the week i.e. Monday and Tuesday, the price of gold has risen by Rs. 7,700 per tola. While during the last week, the price went up by Rs. 5,000 per tola.

In the international market, spot gold rose 0.3 percent at $1,919.07 per ounce by 0956 GMT, while the US gold futures remained unchanged at $1,947.40.

Source: Pro Pakistani