ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday engaged the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank as transaction adviser for inducting private investors in the installation of 10 million smart meters across all electricity distribution companies (Discos). The Ministry of Energy (Power Division) had announced a large-scale rollout of smart meters across Discos in October 2025. On Monday, the […]

An 80-centimetre tsunami wave hit a port in northern Japan on Monday after a powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck the region, Japan’s Meteorological Agency (JMA) said. The wave was observed at 5:34pm (1:34pm PKT) at a port in Kuji, Iwate, JMA said. It previously said a 70-centimetre wave had struck at 5:32pm. A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck northern Japan earlier, the country’s […]

A terrorist and his accomplice, an alleged suicide bomber, were killed by security forces during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Bannu district, the military’s media affairs wing said on Monday. In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said an IBO was conducted on Sunday on the reported presence of “khawarij”. Khawarij, or Fitna al Khawarij, […]

Uncertainty prevailed on Monday over whether the United States and Iran would hold a second round of direct talks, as mixed signals emerged from Tehran amid intensifying tensions with Washington, even as Islamabad prepared to host the two sides. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said Tehran has yet to decide on whether to attend the next round of talks with the US. […]

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX)’s benchmark index KSE-100 plunged by over 3,000 points during intraday trade on Monday. The KSE-100 declined by 3,145.02 points or 1.81 per cent to stand at 170,793.99 at 1:39pm from the previous close of 173,939.01 points. The plunge comes as uncertainty surrounds whether a second round of talks between the United States and Iran will take place in Islamabad. […]

Russia said Monday it had arrested a German woman found with a homemade bomb in her backpack in what it alleged was a Ukrainian-hatched plot to blow up a security services facility in the south. Russia has arrested dozens of people throughout the four-year war, mostly its own citizens, on allegations of working for Ukraine to carry out sabotage attacks. There has been a string of high-profile […]

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi discussed security arrangements for the planned second round of Islamabad Talks with the United States’ ambassador to Pakistan, Natalie Baker, in the capital on Monday. President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that representatives from Washington were heading to Islamabad and they would be “there tomorrow evening” for a second round of negotiations with […]

LAKKI MARWAT: Two terrorists were killed and a police constable embraced martyrdom in a gun battle in Lakki Marwat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police said on Monday. District police spokesperson Qudratullah Khan said the gunfight erupted when police conducted a targeted operation in a forest near the Khundan area, bordering Bannu district. He said that a large police contingent was dispatched […]

ISLAMABAD: The momentum of economic growth in Asia-Pacific developing countries slowed to 4.6 per cent in 2025 and is projected to drop to 4pc in 2026, as fallout from the Middle East situation weighs on energy prices, supply chains and external demand, due to the conflict in the Middle East, said a new United Nations report on Monday. The 2026 edition of the ‘Economic and Social Survey of Asia […]

LAHORE: Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has granted approval for the province’s first sky glass bridge project in tehsil Kotli Sattian, district Murree, to promote tourism. The decision was made during a special meeting jointly presided over by PML-N President Nawaz Sharif and Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif where progress on the Murree Protection and Rehabilitation Plan was reviewed. […]

April 2026 will be a tough month for Pakistan’s balance of payments. Pakistan has been asked to repay its total debt of $3.5 billion to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), including a $450 million 30-year-old loan. This, along with a $1.3bn Eurobond maturing on April 8, 2026, has brought the debt repayment needs so far this month to $4.8bn. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) currently has foreign […]

Amjad has been delivering food in Karachi for six years. His bike, a machine so ubiquitous in Pakistan it might as well be a national symbol, burns through five litres of petrol a week. When oil prices spiked in March 2026, his fuel bill jumped by nearly a third overnight. He does not own the bike. He pays daily rental to a fleet owner and splits whatever margin remains between revenue and costs. […]

ISLAMABAD, RAWALPINDI: Islamabad’s Red Zone was closed to the public as the capital braces to welcome foreign delegations for expected talks between the US and Iran, police said on Sunday, with alternate traffic plans issued to facilitate citizens. “Due to the arrival of foreign delegations in Islamabad, the Red Zone and Extended Red Zone will remain completely closed for all kinds of […]

Labourers employed by the SBCA demolish illegally constructed floors in a building. —Dawn • SBCA appears ineffective as previously demolished illicit structures are brazenly rebuilt in North Nazimabad, other areas• Complainants also face ‘threats’ for speaking up against ‘portion mafia’• Building control authority claims 396 ‘enforcement actions’ this year KARACHI: […]

• Pakistan has highest global burden of Hepatitis C • About 37,000 deaths annually occur due to liver complications like cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma ISLAMABAD: While World Liver Day was observed on Sunday under the theme ‘Solid Habits, Strong Liver’, the representative body of the medical fraternity, Pakistan Medical Association (PMA), expressed grave concern over the […]