Business

Govt increases profit rates on saving schemes

Published

12 months ago

Farwa

CDNS says new rates effective from May 9.
Savings Account rates increase from 18.5% to 19.5%
Special Savings Certificates will now yield 17.4%.

The government has revised the rate of profit on national saving schemes by upto 1% to make the schemes lucrative and mobilise investment from the general public, The News reported Tuesday.

The Central Directorate of National Savings (CDNS) — which works under the Ministry of Finance — announced an increase in the rates of return on some of its National Savings schemes, effective from May 9, 2023.

Taking to his Twitter handle, CDNS Director General Hamid Raza Khalid wrote that the Savings Account rates have been raised from 18.5% to 19.5%.

Additionally, Special Savings Certificates will now yield 17.4% compared to the previous rate of 17.13%.

The rates on three-month Short Term Savings Certificates (STSC) have been increased to 20.84%, while the yield of six-month STSC has surged to 20.82%.

Rates on 1-year STSC have also been revised upward to 20.8%. Khalid said the rates on other schemes will remain unchanged.

	Current	Previous	Change
Defence Saving Certificates (DSC)	14.87%	14.87%	—
Bahbood Saving Certificates (BSC)	16.56%	16.56%	—
Regular Income Certificates (RIC)	12.84%	12.84%	—
Special Saving Certificates (SSC)	17.40%	17.13%	+27
Savings Account (SA)	19.50%	18.50%	+100
Pensioners Benefit Account (PBA)	16.56%	16.56%	—
Short Term Saving Certificates (STSC)	20.8%	19.82%	+98

The revision in the rates of National Savings schemes comes after the State Bank of Pakistan raised the key interest rate by 100 basis points, taking it to 21% last month.

This decision was made due to back-breaking inflation and is expected to remain high in the near future.

The CDNS, which offers saving certificates to individual investors, reinvests the money in government papers like Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) and treasury bills (T-bills).

Business

Pakistan’s gold prices continue to decline.

Published

9 hours ago

Farwa

The price of ten grams of 24 carat gold dropped by Rs 1,201 to Rs 205,418 from Rs 206,619, while the price of ten grams of 22 carat gold dropped to Rs 188,300 from Rs 189,400, according to the All Sindh Sarafa Jewellers Association.

Silver, priced at Rs. 2,620 per tola and Rs. 2,254.80 per ten grams, stayed at that level. As reported by the organization, the price of gold dropped by $11 on the global market, to $2,297 from $2,308.

Business

Price of LPG “slashed” by Rs. 20 per kilogram

Published

9 hours ago

Farwa

Sources claim that LPG rates have been lowered by Rs 20, making the cost per kilogram drop from Rs 280 to Rs 260.

It is noteworthy to remark that the costs of LPG were reduced by Rs 20 per kilogram earlier, resulting in a total reduction of Rs 40 per kilogram within a few weeks.

The price of liquefied petroleum gas for the month of May 2024 was lowered by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on April 30.

The LPG tariffs were lowered by Rs 11.88 to Rs 238.46 per kilogram in accordance with the OGRA’s notice. On Wednesday, May 1, 2024, the new rates will go into effect.

In April of last year, the price per kilogram of LPG was Rs 250.34. pricing reduction of Rs 140.18 has resulted in a new pricing for home LPG cylinders set for May 2024 of Rs 2813.85.

The OGRA reported a drop in liquefied petroleum gas pricing in April. The price of LPG is now Rs 250.34 per kg instead of Rs 256.78 due to a reduction of Rs 6.44 per kg.

The price of the household cylinder was fixed at Rs 2954.03 for the month of April, down from Rs 3030.12, a decrease of Rs 76.9.

Business

ADB delegation stops by FBR headquarters

Published

9 hours ago

Farwa

Senior Director ADB Tariq Niazi oversaw the expedition, which also involved Sana Masood, Farzana Noshab, and Senior Public Sector Management Specialist Laisiasa Tora. The meeting included presentations from economists as well, according to an FBR press release.

The officers focused on structural and policy adjustments as they discussed the Domestic Resource Mobilization Program’s implementation at the meeting.

$300 million was given to the Pakistani government by ADB in December 2023 as a result of the hard work and dedication of FBR. Better laws, regulations, and institutional capability for the FBR were established by Sub-Program I.

With the $300 million in funding provided by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to the Government of Pakistan in December 2023, the delegation conveyed satisfaction with the program’s effective launch.

The FBR also underlined how crucial digitization is to recording the economy and boosting productivity in a sustainable way.

In order to promote the Government of Pakistan’s Digital Tax Administration Project, both parties decided to look into measures to improve their cooperation.