Business

Banks to observe extended working hours

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

At the request of the Federal Board of Revenue, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday directed all branches of banks to observe extended banking hours in order to facilitate the taxpayers in payment of government duties/taxes.

The central bank, in a statement issued in this regard, said that the direction is for all branches of banks including the National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation (SBP-BSC).

“[…] all branches of banks including National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) and field offices of SBP Banking Services Corporation (SBP-BSC) shall observe extended banking hours until 04:00 P.M. and 06:00 P.M. on 30th and 31st March 2023 respectively for collection of government taxes through ADC’s Over-the-Counter (OTC) facility,” the statement read.

To facilitate collection of Govt. duties/taxes, all branches of banks including NBP and SBP BSC field offices will observe extended banking hours till 4pm & 6pm on 30th & 31st March, 2023 respectively.
See PR: https://t.co/6rzm7F7ZqP pic.twitter.com/zEbHqfAfXN
— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) March 29, 2023

It mentioned that National Institutional Facilitation Technologies (NIFT) shall arrange a special clearing at 6pm on March 31 (Friday) for the same-day clearing of payment instruments deposited at NBP’s authorised branches for customs collections.

“For this purpose, all banks shall arrange to keep their clearing-related branches open till such time that is necessary to facilitate the special clearing by NIFT on March 31, 2023 (Friday),” it read.

It should be noted that during Ramadan, banks observe reduced hours. Currently, the timings are:

Public dealing timings:

Monday to Thursday — 9am to 2pm (without break)
Friday — 8:30am to 1pm (without break)

Office timings:

Monday to Thursday — 9am to 3:30pm (with prayer break from 2pm to 2:30pm)
Friday — 8:30am to 1pm (without break)

Business

Pakistan Desires a Sturdy, Long-Term Alliance With Huawei: PM

Published

7 hours ago

Bilal

According to Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, the government’s primary objective is to give Pakistani youth technical training in the field of information technology.

The prime minister expressed his desire for a strong and long-term collaboration with Huawei in an interview with a five-member delegation that visited him in Islamabad and was led by Huawei CEO Ethan Sun.

He said the Huawei’s ICT training program will not only increase it exports but will also help youth in getting job opportunities.

The meeting was briefed on the progress made in providing training in the it sector to 300,000 pakistani youth organized by Huawei.

Out of 300,000 youth, 240,000 youth will be provided basic training while 60,000 youth will be provided high-tech training.

Business

The IMF allows Pakistan to lower electricity tariffs.\

Published

7 hours ago

Bilal

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has permitted the Pakistani government to decrease the energy cost by one rupee.

The alleviation will be incorporated into the base tariff for electrical units, with funding sourced from revenue collected by the levy on captive power plants. A tax has been enacted on the utilization of gas by captive power plants.

The government is developing a relief plan for electricity consumers, which will be announced upon clearance from the international lender.

Business

Robust purchasing sustains PSX’s positive trend

Published

7 hours ago

Bilal

On Thursday, bullish momentum continued in the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), with the benchmark KSE-100 index reaching 118,806 after an increase of over 300 points.

Across the board buying was observed in key sectors, including commercial banks, fertiliser, power generation, and oil and gas exploration companies.

Aside from that, index-heavy equities such as MARI, POL, HBL, MCB, UBL, KOHC, and LUCK experienced gains, capitalizing on the prevailing bullish atmosphere in the market.

Market analysts attribute the recent bullish trend in the PSX to a staff-level agreement between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistani authorities following the initial review under Pakistan’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and a new arrangement under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF).

Furthermore, a recent study done by the Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC) and Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) regarding the feasibility of the Reko Diq project in Balochistan has also conveyed favorable indications to investors.

The bulls surged rapidly after the staff-level deal with the global lender, with the KSE-100 Index reaching a peak of 118,220 before closing at 117,178 points, reflecting an advance of 1,139 points on Wednesday.