ISLAMABAD: Government earned Rs25.7 billion from Petroleum Development Levy (PDL) on petrol and diesel during July and August, Geo News reported Friday.
According to industry statistics, Pakistan consumed almost 2.386 billion liters of diesel and 678 million liters of petrol during two months of July and August.
It should be mentioned that government imposed Rs10, Rs8 and Rs14 of PDL on petrol, diesel and hi-Octane respectively.
The government earned Rs112 billion under PDL head during FY2008-09.
WASHINGTON: The US unemployment rate rose in September to 9.8 percent as 263,000 jobs were cut, the Labor Department reported Friday.
The report on nonfarm payrolls, seen as one of the best indicators of economic momentum was far worse than expectations for a loss of 175,000 jobs and could hurt chances of a sustainable recovery from recession.
The number of job cuts rose sharply after a revised loss of 201,000 in August.
The jobless rate of 9.8 percent was in line with expectations.
The goods-producing sector lost 116,000 jobs in September including 64,000 in manufacturing. Even worse, the services sector shed 147,000 jobs with 39,000 of those in retailing.
Since the start of the recession in December 2007, the figures showed the number of unemployed persons has increased by 7.6 million to 15.1 million, and the unemployment rate has doubled to 9.8 percent, according to the Labor Department.
The latest official data showed the US economy contracted at a 0.7 percent pace in the second quarter, nearly emerging from the recession that slashed output by 6.4 percent in the first quarter.
Most economists expect growth to return in the third quarter but say the recovery could fade without job growth.
| Updated at: 1835 PST, Friday, October 02, 2009 | |
| KABUL: A suicide bomber struck a convoy of U.S. forces in southern Afghanistan on Friday, killing two U.S. service members, a press officer for U.S. and NATO-led troops said. Captain Elizabeth Mathias gave no further details of the attack. Insurgents increasingly rely on suicide attacks and roadside bombs in Afghanistan, where violence has reached its worst levels since the start of the eight-year-old war. A suicide bomber killed one American service member in a similar attack on a convoy on Wednesday in Khost province in the southeast. |
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has bought 25,000 tonnes of white sugar at $676 per tonne cost and freight and free out (CFFO), in a tender that closed on Sept. 30, a government official and a trader said on Friday.
The government has approved the import of 100,000 tonnes of sugar to meet possible shortages. It is not known when the remaining 75,000 tonnes will be imported, but expectations of more purchases from Pakistan have helped underpin sentiment in futures markets bolstered by demand from neighbour India.
"The contract for 25,000 tonnes of sugar has been awarded to Al-Khaleej, which quoted the lowest price," said an official of the state-owned Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP), which issued the tender.
A total of five companies took part in the bidding but only four bids were found valid, the TCP official said earlier.
The other offers for a lot of 25,000 tonnes came from Cargill ($689.00/tonne), LDC ($690.12/tonne) and Bunge ($699.69/tonne), a trader, who declined to be identified, said on Wednesday.
Pakistan bought 75,000 tonnes of white sugar in a tender that closed on Aug. 29, before the approval of another 100,000 tonnes of imports to meet possible shortages.
The government has also decided to import 300,000 tonnes of raw sugar as officials expect the 2009/10 crop to come in at about 3 million tonnes, significantly less than demand.
The raw sugar is not expected to be imported before December, a Food Ministry official said recently.
The decision to import refined sugar came after domestic prices surged ahead of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ended in the third week of September.
The rising price of sugar and other staples, plus power shortages, have led to anger with the government and intervention by the judiciary.
The Supreme Court, hearing a case on sugar prices, ordered the government on Friday to implement an earlier court decision to ensure a retail price of 40 rupees/kg (48 U.S. cents) compared with the then market price of 46 rupees/kg.
The government had filed an appeal in the Supreme Court challenging the earlier court ruling. Government officials had said they could not persuade sugar millers to sell for less than 46 rupees/kg as it would hurt their interests.
The Supreme Court also appointed a one-man commission, headed by the chairman of the Competition Commission of Pakistan, to determine sugar prices taking into account the cost of production and other expenses.
The next hearing has been set for Oct. 16.
LIMASSOL: Commonwealth finance ministers on Friday appealed for an open trading system in the face of the global financial crisis which has impoverished millions of citizens in smaller member states.
"The impact of the crisis has been felt very strongly and persistently in the poorest and smallest developing members as well as resource-dependent and less diversified economies," they said at the end of a three-day meeting.
"These economies are especially vulnerable to lower trade levels and capital flows and restricted in their ability to use domestic policy to alleviate the impact of exogenous economic shocks," the ministers said in a final statement.
They called for "continued global commitment to an open trading system and the rejection of protectionism," after the talks in the southern Cypriot coastal resort of Limassol.
The finance ministers discussed "the appalling human cost of the current economic crisis in many low-income countries.
"Despite the greater resilience provided in these countries through strengthened policy frameworks, many millions of Commonwealth citizens have fallen into poverty as a result of the crisis," they warned.
The grouping of Britain and 52 former colonies and territories also "stressed the need for greater international support for these countries to build greater resilience in the face of these shocks."
Ahead of the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Trinidad on November 27-29, they called for "continued global macroeconomic coordination including monetary and fiscal policy stimulus to avoid a return to global recession and to ensure that global growth is well established."
KARACHI: Sindh Home Minister Dr. Zulfiqar Mirza has ordered CCPO Karachi to launch an inquiry into the incident of Baldia Town in which police provided protection to the decoit, arrested others and manhandled the Geo News team.
The provincial minister directed the police to mend their attitudes and refrain from misusing authority.
He also directed the IG Sindh and DIG Training to adopt measures for imparting proper training to the police officials and personnel.
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Friday warmly welcomed the five Pakistanis freed by the Saudi government, imprisoned on charges of narcotics smuggling.
The five were freed after the arrest of the real culprits in Pakistan, who without the persons' knowledge, placed narcotics in their belongings.
The Prime Minister invited the freed persons to visit the Prime Minister House soon after their arrival at Benazir Bhutto International Airport by a special Saudi chartered flight.
Gilani received the returned Pakistanis accompanied by Interior Minister Rehman Malik and warmly greeted them with garlands on their safe return back home.
"Your innocence has added to the country's pride," the Prime Minister told the freed persons that were held soon after they landed in the holy land to perform Umrah.
The Prime Minister expressed gratitude to the Saudi government for the release of Pakistanis after being provided proof of their innocence. He said the government's sincere efforts and prayers of nation brought fruits with Allah's blessing.
Gilani mentioned the efforts of Interior Minister Rehman Malik and the Religious Ministry for making the issue resolved in positive.
He said he had directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to make diplomatic efforts to take up the issue of release of other innocent Pakistanis abroad.
He also listened to the problems of the freed persons and issued directives regarding a demand for regularization of a man in a company.
Rehman Malik said the case of release of Pakistani prisoners was pursued on Prime Minister's special interest.
He said he had talked with his Saudi counterpart Prince Naif Bin Abdul Aziz who extended great cooperation in this regard.
He said the freed Pakistanis were due to return on September27, however on their request for Umrah, the date was extended to date.
State Minister for Religious Affairs Shagufta Jumani was also present.
ISLAMABAD: Five Pakistanis arrested in Saudi Arabia on charges of trying to smuggle drugs about four months ago have arrived in Pakistan on board Saudi special plane, Geo News reported Friday.
It should be mentioned that Saudi Arabia released the five Pakistanis who were interned at King Abdul Aziz International Airport, Jeddah on charges of drug smuggling, after ascertaining that they had no relation with the drugs.
Government personalities including Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik and Chairman of Standing Committee for Interior senator Talha Mehmood, Saudi Ambassador Abdul Aziz Al-Ghadeer and the families of the released people received the lucky Pakistanis at Chaklala Airbase.
The coming Pakistanis are accompanied with two-member FIA and some Saudi officials.
According to sources, these people will be escorted to the PM house.
Sources in the Interior Ministry said that the Pakistanis were scheduled to return on Sept 28 but some legal procedure delayed their arrival.
The five who belong to the same family requested Saudi authorities that they wanted to perform Umrah for which they had travelled to the kingdom but could not do it because of their arrest on arrival. Saudi authorities have permitted them to perform Umrah.
According to a press statement of the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Islamabad the security authorities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, have released the five Pakistani nationals who were interned at King Abdul Aziz International Airport, Jeddah, on 9/6/1430 H, on charges of drug smuggling, after ascertaining that they had no relation with the drugs, which they were carrying without their knowledge.
This transpired after the concerned authorities in the Kingdom were briefed about the outcome of investigation carried out by the Pakistani security authorities with the real culprits who were apprehended in Pakistan, during the meeting of the Interior Minister His Excellency Mr. Rahman Malik, with officials of the Saudi Interior Ministry in his recent visit to the Kingdom, the statement said.
The Press Statement of the Saudi Embassy in Pakistan further said that the detainees after their release performed Umrah and visited the Prophet’s Mosque. The Embassy advised all those traveling to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to make sure that their luggage which they are carrying, does not contain any contraband item punishable by the rules of Saudi Arabia, particularly narcotics, which is punished by death sentence.
The three who have confessed to have tried to smuggle drugs into the kingdom face death sentence. Those who were arrested in Pakistan, including a travel agent and his wife, would be tried under Pakistani laws.
YANGON: Judges rejected an appeal by pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi Friday against her extended house arrest, a Myanmar official said.
A divisional court in Yangon upheld the Nobel Laureate's conviction, delivered in August, over a bizarre incident in which an American man swam uninvited to her home, earning her an extra 18 months in detention. The Myanmar official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told foreign news agency that the appeal was rejected but did not give further details.
KARACHI: The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) witnessed bullish activity on Friday, contributing 154 points to the benchmark KSE-100 Index which finished the week at 9,455.
Today’s trade started in the red territory but later buying in energy stocks pushed the major Index into the green zone where it pegged at the current level.
The market turnover was registered at 220 million shares with Jehangir Siddiqui Company remaining the volume leader with a gain of Rs1.74 to close at Rs40.70.
CENTURION: England captain Andrew Strauss has won the toss and elected to bat against Australia in the first semi-finals of the ICC Champions Trophy here at the Super Sport Park on Friday.
England, rebounding from a 6-1 series loss at home to Australia last month, have made three changes to their team.
Fast bowler Stuart Broad has a sprained buttock and his place has been taken by Tim Bresnan.
England have chosen a specialist wicketkeeper in Steve Davies, making his one-day international debut, with Eoin Morgan returning to the outfield after standing in for the injured Matt Prior in their two previous matches.
Batsman Ravi Bopara has been dropped, along with left-arm seamer Ryan Sidebottom, who has been replaced by Graham Onions.
Australia, who are unbeaten in the competition, have named an unchanged starting XI.
Teams
England - Andrew Strauss, Joe Denly, Owais Shah, Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Steve Davies, Luke Wright, Tim Bresnan, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Graham Onions.
Australia - Shane Watson, Tim Paine, Ricky Ponting, Michael Hussey, Cameron White, Callum Ferguson, James Hopes, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Nathan Hauritz, Peter Siddle.
LONDON: The conflict in Afghanistan is deteriorating in some ways and will "not remain winnable indefinitely," the top US military commander in the country warned Thursday.
General Stanley McChrystal added that forces would be in a much stronger position once US President Barack Obama decides on troop levels in Afghanistan, while saying that it would be wrong to rush to make a decision.
"The situation is serious and I choose that word very, very carefully ... neither success nor failure can be taken for granted," said McChrystal, who has asked for up to 40,000 more troops to fight the Taliban.
"The situation is in some ways deteriorating but not in all ways," he told the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) think-tank in London.
"Waiting does not prolong a favourable outcome. This effort will not remain winnable indefinitely."
McChrystal, who is also the International Security Assistance Force commander in Afghanistan, warned in a report leaked last month that the conflict could be lost within a year without more troops.
He reportedly wants up to 40,000 more US troops in Afghanistan.
The US general said Obama led talks in the White House this week "very effectively" but declined to give any further details on the decision-making process.
"I think that is a necessary process we go through so we come to a clear decision... Once he makes that decision I think we'll be in a much stronger position," he said.
Asked if he was worried that the political debate was holding up military action, he said: "I think the more debate we have the healthier this is going to be."
"I don't think we have the luxury of going so fast we make the wrong decision," he added.
The White House says Obama will only decide on whether to accept McChrystal's request for more troops -- as part of a rigorous counter-insurgency push -- after first arriving at a new US strategy.
The process could take weeks, officials say, warning that past conflicts like the Vietnam war have shown the folly of throwing thousands of men into a fight that is not properly defined.
KARAK: Ten persons were killed and 11 wounded when a bus plunged into a gorge in Shaheedian area in suburb of district Karak.
According to police sources, a bus traveling from Karachi to Swat had been plunged into a gorge due to over speeding while negotiating Shaheedan curve. Ten persons including a child were killed and 11 injured in the incident. The wounded were rushed to district headquarter hospital Karak from where three bodies were shifted to Kohat.
LONDON: Britain is helping to set up a national security authority in Pakistan to combat terrorism and promote political stability, the BBC revealed.
It will be modelled on terrorism units run by the Home Office and MI5.
Many analysts fear the battle with the Taliban in Pakistan could reach the scale of the conflict in Afghanistan.
British intelligence has estimated that almost three quarters of terrorist attacks in Britain have their origins in Pakistan.
According to the BBC report, senior British and Pakistani counter-terrorism sources have said British training and funding will be made available to the new authority.
Initially 200 experts will be employed in Pakistan, covering extremism and religious affairs.
There will be a new counter-terrorism strategy within six months, and research projects will be launched.
One of these will examine the alleged role in religious schools and radicalisation.
Critics of the plan suggest Pakistan's intelligence agency, the ISI, could block progress, because it will remain in charge of terrorist investigations, although Pakistani sources insist the ISI is fully on board, our correspondent added.
The Home Office declined to comment on funding, but said it strongly supported the move.
WASHINGTON : The US Congress on Wednesday voted to triple aid to Pakistan in a five-year commitment aimed at bringing development to the frontline nation and reducing the allure of extremism.
President Barack Obama has enthusiastically supported the 7.5 billion-dollar package, calling it a long-term investment to fight al Qaeda by building schools and infrastructure and improving the role of women.
The House of Representatives approved the package despite misgivings of some lawmakers concerned either that Pakistan was not doing enough to
ISLAMABAD : Saudi government has released five Pakistanis arrested under drug smuggling charges in Saudi Arabia, Aaj News reported.
Saudi Embassy in Islamabad in a statement said that five Pakistanis have been released after the confirmation that they were not linked with the drug smuggling. They were unaware about smuggling of narcotics.
MUMBAI: A Bengali topline daily in Kolkata flashed on its frontpage on Monday that global brand Mexican architect, Javier Senosian, was designing an organic weird shell house for Sachin Tendulkar bang in the middle of Mumbai and even carried photographs as "first images" of what was purportedly the master blaster's TV room.
It was too good to be true and seemed outlandish though brilliant. The paper also said that the house, worth Rs 30 crores spread over 9000 sq feet, was being built on Carter Road in Mumbai and gave a host of reasons as to why Tendulkar was shifting.
The photographs kindled interest and a search on the net revealed hundreds of matches saying the same thing but what jarred was the look of the house, shaped like a snail with its snout out of the shell, which looked hopelessly out of place in Mumbai. It looked more weird and bizarre than imaginative.
The Bengali newspaper also praised Tendulkar's "great sense of imagination." Incidentally, the report was written by a topline sports journalist who, it has always been thought, was close to Tendulkar and other international cricketers. Obviously, no one doubted the story.
However, when the Mexican designer was called up in Mexico City, who has a website showing photographs which had appeared on the net and thence in the Bengali newspaper but clearly said that the Nautilus House as it is called in Mexico City had no plans of replication anywhere else. The internet stories could be a fake.
It was early morning in Mexico and Senosian himself picked up the phone. First, he hardly knew English. Second, he was rudely jolted early in the morning by a name as unfamiliar as Tendulkar and this correspondent had to spell it out for him. "No, what is cricket? I have never been to India and this is nothing concerning me," he spluttered."
Who is Senor Tendulkar?" he asked incredulously.
Later he said in an email sent to an Indian daily which reads simply: "Your query about the Shell House is accepted. That's not true, this house is not in Mumbai, India, and Sachin Tendulkar is not the owner of this house. The house is in Mexico City and Javier Senosian, Mexican architect, has designed and built it here in Mexico. He has never been to India. I have a house like a shell but we call it Nautilus House, and I don't have any work in India."
CENTURION: Australia will take on England in the first semi-final of ICC Champions Trophy to be played here on Friday.
Australia clinched top spot in Group A with a last-ball two-wicket win over Pakistan.
Australia and England will face each other for the first time in the Champions Trophy event.
The match will be played at 6:00 PM (Pakistan Standard Time).
The match toss will be of key significance between the two teams.
Forecast of rain has been made during tomorrow’s critical match.
KARACHI: Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) continued to remain in the grips of bears on the third consecutive day as the benchmark KSE-100 Index further slides by 49 points to 9,301 on Thursday.
The Index today began its march in the positive zone but the early hour gains were eroded when investors opted to off load their holdings in energy and banking sectors.
The trade volume was recorded at 220 million shares.
Jehangir Siddiqui Company was today’s volume leader which eased paisas 43 to close at Rs.38.75.
KSE-30 Index lost 85 points to peg at 9,946.
ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Muhammed Chaudhry Thursday directed concerned authorities to ensure the sale of sugar at Rs40/kg until the Competitive Commission of Pakistan (CCP) presents its report on the issue, Geo News reported Thursday.
Moreover, he suggested setting up an independent commission to specify the sugar prices. All the stakeholders have been directed to mull over the suggestion and submit their response to the court tomorrow.
He said there are two sides of the sugar prices—on one side, there are 170 million people of Pakistan and on the other, all the governments are united.
Wondering how the government filed an appeal against high court’s verdict, he directed Attorney General and Advocate Generals to bring their respective rules of business, which have justified it.
During the hearing of a case regarding sugar prices, CJ Iftikhar said they should have implemented on the verdict of High Court, instead of challenging the verdict in the higher court.
He faced the government officials and said, ‘You came here for the perpetuation of this cartel and that sugar be sold at Rs60/kg.’
On this occasion, Acting President Javed Kiani was summoned a the court for submitting a fake document and the CJ directed Chairman Sugar Mills Association Iskandar Khan to present to the court the original meeting minutes and the record of the meeting. He also warned if the required documents were not submitted, the consequences would have to be suffered.
WASHINGTON: Stressing linkages between Pakistan, India and Afghanistan with regard to durable peace and stability in South Asia, the United States on Wednesday said it encourages dialogue between Islamabad and New Delhi for developing a stable bilateral relationship. Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs Philip J Crowley said the U.S. is focused on the region and “understands clearly the importance of Afghanistan, the importance of Paki .... Full Story
ISLAMABAD: Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik told the Senate’s standing committee that there are at least 5000 Pakistanis jailed in Britain, Geo News reported Thursday.A meeting of Senate’s standing committee on Interior was held at Nadra Headquarters here.Tabling a report on the released Pakistanis from Saudi Arab in drug smuggling case, he said nobody was extradited to the KSA in return for these Pakistanis.There are contradictory reports .... Full Story
ISLAMABAD: US once again accused that Osama Bin Laden is alive and Taliban leadership including Mullah Omar is present in Quetta, Geo News reported Thursday.Talking to media, Deputy Chief of the Mission, US Embassy Gerald M. Feierstein alleged that Osama is present in Pakistan, adding the command system of Taliban is based in Quetta and they are launching their activities from the suburbs of the city.He urged the government of ... Full Story
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