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Federal Minister for Petroleum Ali Pervaiz Malik held a formal meeting with John L. Thornton, Chairman of Barrick Gold Corporation, to review progress on the Reko Diq copper and gold mining project in Balochistan.
Farmers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are raising alarms over what they describe as Indian violations of the Indus Waters Treaty, warning that restricted water flows are directly imperilling the province's rice production ahead of the critical sowing season. Agricultural communities have called on the World Bank, the treaty's guarantor institution, to intervene and ensure compliance.
Pakistan's foreign aid inflows rose by 19.73 percent during the July to March period of the current fiscal year, according to data released by the Economic Affairs Division. The increase reflects strengthened disbursements from multilateral and bilateral creditors as Islamabad's IMF programme provided a framework for resumed engagement.
China recorded trade figures for April that exceeded analyst forecasts, providing a degree of resilience narrative to Beijing's economic management story at a time of sustained pressure from US tariff escalation. The outperformance in both export and import data surprised markets that had anticipated a more pronounced contraction under the weight of trade war measures.
Jet fuel prices in Pakistan have surged sharply, compounding broader energy cost pressures that are rippling across the economy. The increase follows global commodity market turbulence linked to the Middle East war and coincides with the government's decision to raise the petroleum levy on petrol and high-speed diesel.
Federal Minister for Energy Ali Pervaiz Malik announced on Saturday that the government intends to pass on the benefit of declining global fuel prices to Pakistani consumers, a commitment that would translate into reduced petroleum prices at domestic filling stations in the near term. The statement was made amid falling international crude benchmarks driven partly by reduced demand projections.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has declared that Pakistan's economic recovery trajectory remains on course despite the pressures arising from regional conflict, issuing assurances that the country's fuel supply chain will remain uninterrupted regardless of external disruptions. The minister made the remarks as concerns mounted among businesses and consumers about the stability of critical commodities in the current geopolitical environment.
The federal government has initiated a structured review of existing export promotion schemes and incentive frameworks as it prepares its forthcoming annual budget. The exercise aims to identify which schemes have delivered measurable results and which require restructuring or discontinuation in the interest of fiscal efficiency.
Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal has called on the nation to convert the momentum of Operation Marka-e-Haq into sustained economic progress, arguing that Pakistan must now pursue an economic victory with the same determination shown on the battlefield. Speaking publicly on Saturday, Iqbal drew a direct link between national security and economic strength, asserting that a country's true power rests not only on military capability but on the resilience of its economy, industrial base, and human capital.
The federal government has initiated a review of Pakistan's export rebate framework in the lead-up to the annual budget, with officials examining the structure of incentives offered to exporters across key industrial sectors including textiles, engineering goods, and value-added manufacturing. The review comes at a critical juncture as Pakistan seeks to sustain export momentum under its ongoing economic stabilisation programme, with the International Monetary Fund and domestic policymakers both stressing the need to shift toward sustainable, export-led growth rather than consumption-driven expansion.
Pakistan has formally set a target to generate 95 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2040, in what officials are framing as a transformative commitment to clean energy transition. The announcement positions Pakistan among developing nations setting ambitious long-term energy reform goals aligned with global climate commitments.
China's aluminium exports jumped 15 percent in April as the ongoing war in Iran disrupted global supply chains and squeezed production capacity in competing markets, according to customs data. The conflict has created a significant gap in the global aluminium supply balance that Chinese producers are rapidly filling, extending their already dominant position in the metal's international trade.
China's export sector staged a strong recovery in April after a subdued performance in March, with customs data showing a sharp rebound in outbound shipments that also widened the country's overall trade surplus. The figures indicate a resilient manufacturing base continuing to redirect global supply volumes despite mounting geopolitical pressures on key trade corridors.
Analysts and energy experts have raised concerns that Iran may be redirecting crude oil supplies into the Persian Gulf under pressure from the expanded US sanctions blockade, a development that could have significant implications for regional oil market dynamics and global energy pricing. The Trump administration's intensified economic campaign against Tehran has reportedly constrained Iran's ability to export crude through conventional channels, pushing the regime toward informal and potentially destabilising workarounds.
Global oil prices settled approximately one percent lower in a volatile trading session, as markets weighed competing signals from Middle East conflict escalation, diplomatic efforts toward a US-Iran deal, and demand-side concerns. The price movement reflects the extreme sensitivity of crude markets to the evolving geopolitical situation in the Gulf, where shipping route security, production disruption risk, and sanctions-related supply constraints are all active variables.
The State Bank of Pakistan has extended its relaxation on the payment terms for oil imports on a cost, insurance, and freight basis until July 10, providing continued breathing room for oil marketing companies and energy sector importers managing foreign exchange and payment logistics under the prevailing global commodity volatility. The CIF basis relaxation allows importers to settle payment terms in a manner that eases the immediate foreign exchange demand at the time of cargo arrival, reducing pressure on the country's reserves at a moment when global oil prices remain elevated due to Middle East tensions.
Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has asserted that Pakistan's key macroeconomic indicators remain on track despite the turbulence created by escalating tensions in the Middle East, seeking to reassure markets, investors, and international partners that the country's stabilisation trajectory has not been materially disrupted. The Finance Minister pointed to improvements in inflation, foreign exchange reserves, current account data, and fiscal consolidation as evidence of resilience in the face of an adverse global environment.
The Power Division has unveiled a new transparent subsidy mechanism for electricity consumers, a reform intended to replace the existing opaque and often contested system of cross-subsidies with a more accountable, targeted, and verifiable framework. The new mechanism is designed to ensure that subsidies reach their intended beneficiaries, primarily lower income households and certain protected commercial categories, while eliminating the fiscal inefficiencies and leakage associated with blanket subsidisation.
Industry and trade bodies have formally recommended the removal of the super tax on exporters and rationalisation of withholding tax obligations applicable to export-oriented businesses, arguing that the current tax burden is undermining the competitiveness of Pakistani exporters in international markets at a critical time for the country's external account recovery. The recommendations come ahead of the upcoming federal budget cycle and reflect long-standing demands from the textile, pharmaceutical, surgical instruments, and other export sectors for relief from levies that were originally introduced as emergency revenue measures but have since become embedded in the tax framework.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange turned bearish on Friday, shedding over 1,778 points in a session marked by broad-based selling pressure across key sectors. The decline reflected a deterioration in investor confidence, with market participants citing a confluence of domestic economic uncertainty and regional geopolitical concerns as drivers of the sell-off.
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority has raised substantive questions about the proposed Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan for 2025 to 2035, signalling that the regulator has concerns about the feasibility, cost assumptions, and planning methodology underlying the government's ten-year power generation roadmap. NEPRA's scrutiny of the IGCEP is part of its regulatory mandate to ensure that capacity addition plans are economically sound, demand-aligned, and do not create additional fiscal pressure through unnecessary or poorly structured power purchase agreements.
Gold prices are on course for a weekly gain as investors monitor the uncertain prospects for a US-Iran peace deal, with persistent geopolitical risk sustaining demand for the precious metal as a hedge against instability. Spot gold has maintained an upward bias throughout the week as diplomatic signals alternated between cautious optimism and fresh alarm.
Toyota, the world's largest automaker by volume, has projected a 20 percent drop in annual profit, attributing the sharp decline primarily to the economic disruptions triggered by the Iran war, including elevated energy costs, supply chain dislocation, and weakened consumer demand across key markets. The forecast is among the starkest corporate assessments of the conflict's commercial fallout.
Pakistan has cancelled its latest round of liquefied natural gas spot purchase bids, citing emerging optimism over a potential de-escalation in Middle East tensions that have recently driven global LNG prices sharply higher. The decision reflects a tactical pause in procurement rather than a reduction in the country's underlying energy import requirements.
Pakistani industrialists have issued a formal warning to the Commerce Ministry against implementing abrupt reductions in import duties, cautioning that rushed tariff cuts could expose domestic manufacturers to severe competitive pressure before they are adequately prepared. The warning comes as the government reviews its tariff structure as part of broader trade liberalisation commitments.
International Airlines Group, the parent company of British Airways, has issued a profit warning citing the ongoing Middle East conflict as a material threat to its annual financial performance. The airline group said the Gulf war is disrupting flight routes, inflating fuel costs, and suppressing passenger demand on affected corridors, with the combined impact expected to weigh significantly on full-year earnings.
The United Arab Emirates has been quietly routing oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to sustain crude export volumes under mounting commercial pressure, according to reports that suggest the vessels were operating with obscured identification to avoid scrutiny. The reports indicate that with global oil demand signals weakening and OPEC-plus production dynamics creating revenue stress for Gulf producers, the UAE has been seeking to move crude through one of the world's most strategically sensitive waterways without drawing official attention.
Pakistan's Finance Ministry and the State Bank of Pakistan have expressed measured optimism about the country's economic trajectory, citing expectations of a forthcoming $1.2 billion tranche from the International Monetary Fund as a stabilising signal for the broader economy. Senior officials from both institutions indicated that key macroeconomic indicators, including declining inflation, improving foreign exchange reserves, and a more stable current account position, are contributing to a cautiously confident outlook for the ongoing fiscal year.
Pakistan has turned down the two lowest evaluated bids in its latest liquefied natural gas procurement tender, raising fresh questions about the country's energy sourcing strategy and supply security. The rejection of the most competitively priced offers is unusual in a procurement environment where cost minimisation is typically a primary criterion, and points to concerns over either cargo specifications, delivery schedules, or counterparty reliability.
India is preparing to reinforce a key export promotion scheme as the ongoing conflict involving Iran continues to cloud the country's trade outlook, according to government officials and industry sources. The measures are aimed at shielding Indian exporters from the cascading disruptions caused by elevated freight costs, rerouted shipping lanes, and reduced demand from Middle Eastern markets caught in the war's economic fallout.