Pakistan Financial News

Shaheen Shah Afridi has dismissed reports of rift between him and skipper Babar Azam through a post on social media platform X. On Tuesday, Shaheen Shah Afridi posted a photo with Babar and his father-in-law and former cricketer Shahid Afridi along with the caption: «Family» and also with a heart emoji. After Pakistan's shock exit from the Asia Cup, there were reports that a heated verbal argument erupted between Babar Azam and Shaheen Shah Afridi in the dressing room after their last-ball defeat to Sri Lanka in a low-scoring thriller in the Asia Cup.

Canada and despite multiple deportation requests Ottawa has taken no action against those involved in heinous crimes including the killing of popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala, officials here said on Tuesday. They said that pro-Khalistani outfits such as the World Sikh Organization (WSO), Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) and Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) working at the behest of Pakistan have been allegedly operating freely form the Canadian soil. They said allegations levelled against India by the Canadian authorities and politicians in relation to the murder of Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Khalistani terrorist, are incorrect and based on unsubstantiated assumptions. The issue of deportations of wanted terrorists and gangsters have been raised by Indian authorities at multiple diplomatic and security talks but the Canadian authorities remained non-committal and brazen in support of these terror elements, the officials said. Multiple dossiers have been handed over to the Canadian side but India's deportation requests have gone unaddressed, they said, adding at least nine separatist organisations supporting terror groups have found their bases in Canada. Eight individuals involved in terror activities and as many gangsters, who have been conspiring with Pakistan's ISI, have found a safe haven in Canada, the officials said. They said that deportation requests for these people — including Gurwant Singh who was involved in terrorist activities in early 1990s — have been pending with the Canadian authorities for years now.

G20 summit. A report by PTI quoted Sharif as saying: “Today Pakistan's prime minister goes country to country to beg for funds while India has reached the moon and is holding G20 meetings. Why Pakistan couldn't achieve the feats India did.

Canada has triggered new diplomatic tensions between Ottawa and New Delhi, withCanada saying it suspects India's involvement in the killing and India calling the allegations «absurd». Here is what is known about Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the man at the centre of the row. — Nijjar was born in 1977 in Jalandhar district in India's northern state of Punjab and moved to Canada in 1997, where he worked as a plumber, according to the Khalistan Extremism Monitor of the New Delhi-based independent Institute for Conflict Management. — He was initially associated with the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) Sikh separatist group, according to India's counter-terrorist, National Investigation Agency.

Sharif spoke on Monday to leaders of his Pakistan Muslim League party via a video link from London, where he has been living in self-imposed exile since 2019. At the time — and though convicted on corruption charges, which he has always denied — Sharif was permitted to leave Pakistan for medical treatment abroad by the government of Imran Khan, who succeeded him as prime minister. After Sharif later failed to return, a court declared him a fugitive from justice. Sharif's party said on Tuesday he will return next month ahead of parliamentary elections. After Khan was ousted in a no-confidence vote in April 2022, Sharif's younger brother Shehbaz Sharif served as a prime minister until August, when he stepped down to allow an interim government to run daily affairs and organize the elections. In his remarks to party officials on Monday, Nawaz Sharif claimed former army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa and ex-spy chief Faiz Hameed conspired with two judges to remove him. He offered no evidence for his claim and there was no immediate comment from the military, the intelligence agency or the judiciary. Sharif's daughter Maryam Nawaz, also an official in the Pakistan Muslim League, said Monday at a party gathering at a hotel in the eastern city of Lahore that her father's return would be «historic.» «Nawaz Sharif's comebacks have been stronger than his setbacks.

By Farooq Wani

ODI World Cup 2023: Rohit Sharma-led Team India lifted the Asia Cup on Sunday in a one-sided match against Sri Lanka. Mohammed Siraj bowled a magnificent spell of 6/21 to stun the Sri Lankan batting order and finally young Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill played a small innings to bring the Asia Cup home. This is a major boost for Team India ahead of the ODI World Cup 2023, but former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir has a warning for skipper Rohit Sharma.

Indian Navy has placed orders for 68 warships and vessels valued at approximately Rs 2 lakh crore. As per a TOI report, this strategic move aligns with India's overarching goal of safeguarding its extensive geostrategic interests and countering China's expanding presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). The Indian Navy, currently boasting 132 warships, 143 aircraft, and 130 helicopters, has received preliminary approval, known as 'acceptance of necessity' (AoN), for the construction of eight next-generation corvettes, nine submarines, five survey vessels, and two multi-purpose vessels within India in the forthcoming years. Despite grappling with the slow-paced construction in domestic shipyards, the phased decommissioning of aging vessels, and fiscal constraints, the Navy anticipates achieving a force level of approximately 155-160 warships by 2030. However, the figures remain dynamic.

NavIC, India's homegrown GPS alternative, is the story of how India changed from a country that depended on others for its crucial needs to the one that is confident of creating a place of its own in the global power hierarchy. With Apple agreeing to incorporate NavIC, or Navigation with Indian Constellation, in its latest iPhone15 smartphones, India has taken an important step towards ‘atmanirbharta’, replacing the GPS (Global Positioning System) of the US which smartphone makers in India mostly use.

Pakistan's development expenditure has nearly come to a standstill, with just Rs 22.5 billion spent in the first two months (July-August) of the fiscal year, against an annual budget allocation of Rs 950 billion, Dawn reported. This comes amid rising interest payments and disruptions caused by a change in the government. Dawn is a Pakistani English-language newspaper. As per data from the Ministry of Planning and Development, the actual expenditure on core development in two months further plunged to a mere Rs 8.1 billion after excluding the Rs 14.4 billion disbursed by the previous Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government for its parliamentarians' schemes, under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Achievement Programme (SAP), during the first 40 days of the fiscal year. A senior official claimed that a significant portion of Rs 8.1 billion was spent before the caretaker government took office. This amount included Rs 2.8 billion utilised by water sector projects, Rs 1.5 billion in the power sector, and an additional Rs 1.4 billion in the information technology and telecom sector, covering both local and international contractual obligations.

The Intercept, an online American non-profit news organization. The arms sales were made for the purpose of supplying the Ukrainian military, signaling Pakistani involvement in a conflict it had faced US pressure to take sides on. The report stated that the revelation is a window into the kind of behind-the-scenes maneuvering between financial and political elites that rarely are exposed to the public, even as the public pays the price, ANI reported, citing The Intercept. Pakistan faced major protests in the face of harsh structural policy reforms demanded by the Washington-based financial body as terms for its recent bailout package.

BJP) on Monday alleged the Congress has «stolen» the theme song of Imran Khan-founded Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf for its "Jan Aakrosh Yatra" campaign in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, inviting a sharp attack from the opposition party. The Yatra is scheduled to set out from September 19 from seven places in the state, where assembly elections are due in November this year. The row erupted after MP BJP unit secretary Rahul Kothari alleged the Congress has copied «Chalo, Chalo Imran Ke Sath», which he said is the theme song of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, in its recently-released song «Chalo, Chalo… Congress Ke Sang Chalo Chalo» for the Jan Aakrosh Yatra. The state BJP shared the video of the theme song of the Pakistan-based party along with the Congress' poll campaign song on its official X account. «Till now, the Congress used to accept those who raised slogans in favour of Pakistan and against Hindustan.

Mohammed Siraj on Sunday donated his player-of-the-match cash prize of USD 5,000 to the Sri Lankan groundstaff who worked tirelessly through the rain-hit Asia Cup. «This cash prize goes to the groundsmen.

International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. With Siraj picking 6 wickets, Hardik Pandya 3, and Jasprit Bumrah 1, India decimated the Sri Lankan innings in just 15.2 overs and the team is all-out for a total of 50 runs.

Defence Ministry has approved the procurement of a regiment of 'Pralay' ballistic missiles for the Indian Army for deployment along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and Line of Control (LoC), that is, borders with China and Pakistan respectively. «This is a major decision for the Indian Army as the proposal to acquire a regiment of the Pralay ballistic missiles which can hit targets between 150-500 Km, was cleared by the recent Defence Acquisition Council meeting,» defence officials told ANI. The Army would be deploying these missiles with conventional warheads and using them in tactical roles. The decision to buy these missiles comes soon after a similar proposal was cleared by the government for the Indian Air Force, they said. As per sources, the acquisition of these ballistic missiles is being seen as a big development for the country which now has a policy that allows the use of ballistic missiles in tactical roles. «Both China and Pakistan have ballistic missiles which are for tactical roles.

International Cricket Stadium in Colombo, the lowest score ever recorded was not even 40. Meanwhile, Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj dismissed six Sri Lankan batters in his 6-over spell. The Sri Lankan innings is over in just 15.2 overs and the team is all-out for a total of 50 runs.

Kashmir (PoK) has become the epicentre of discontent as enraged citizens are protesting against the exorbitant electricity bills they are receiving. The region is now abuzz with calls for a total boycott of bill payments, echoing the frustration of the local population. Hundreds of protesters have taken to the streets of PoK, united in their condemnation of what they perceive as highly inflated electricity bills that are putting undue financial strain on their households. Their collective stand revolves around one resolute pledge: they will not pay these bills until their grievances are addressed. According to the residents, this protest isn't merely about the electricity bills; it's about justice and the rightful ownership of the power they generate. They argued that their hydropower projects are the lifeblood of Pakistan's electricity supply, and yet they are made to pay extra for it, which they vehemently decry as unjust. A senior political leader Taukeer urged the local people to stand united in not paying the electricity bills. «We are not doing anything wrong.

Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final on Sunday, there will be a focus on the performance of skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as they will also carry the batting expectations of India team fans into the World Cup starting next month. Both Rohit and Virat reached personal landmarks in the Asia Cup. Rohit reached the 10,000 ODI runs milestone and Virat has now over 13,000 runs in one-day internationals. The two stars have not scored big in finals of ODI tournaments like the Asia Cup and Cricket World Cup. In five ODI tournament finals, Rohit has scored just 101 in five innings at an average of 20.2 and a strike rate of 77.

India is all set to face defending champion Sri Lanka in the final of the Asia Cup 2023 at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday. A full-fledged match is expected as there is no sign of rainfall in Colombo at the moment. The sky was bright and clear early this morning. The Asia Cup 2023 was highly affected by continuous thunderstorms and drizzling in Sri Lanka which curtailed a few games of the tournament. The match between India and Pakistan in the Super Four stage of Asia Cup 2023 was called off and moved for a reserve day after rain did not allow any play after 24.1 overs. However, the next day, India continued their batting from where they left and, won the match by 228 runs win at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on reserve day. The final of the ongoing Asia Cup between the hosts Sri Lanka and India promises a thrill-a-minute ride, with both teams recording impressive wins on the road to the final. While the Lankans will go into the final as the defending champions, Team India, led by in-form Rohit Sharma, will be desperate to lift the trophy that they haven't won since 2018. Indian squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (VC), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd.

Colombo have been consistent with cloudy and rainy skies throughout the 'Super 4' stage of the Asia Cup. This trend is thought to continue for the final showdown between India and Sri Lanka, scheduled for Sunday at the R. Premadasa Stadium. According to the latest weather updates, there is a possibility of thunderstorms with scattered showers expected during Sunday afternoon and evening. However, similar to the situation during the game between India and Pakistan in the 'Super 4' stage, the final has a reserve day in case rain disrupts the proceedings on Sunday. Both India and Sri Lanka emerged from the 'Super 4' stage with four points each, earning them a spot in the final. India secured the top position in the table thanks to their superior net run rate. In contrast, Bangladesh and Pakistan, which finished third and fourth, were eliminated from the tournament.CATCH ALL LIVE UPDATES OF INDIA VS SRI LANKA FINAL HERE The highly anticipated final is set to kick off at 3 p.m. local time, which aligns with 3 p.m. IST.Weather forecast for the day:

Amid growing tension between India and Pakistan in the Kashmir border, Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar in a strong message to India's enemies suggesting that going in war with us can turn catastrophic for one's family. Noting that Indian Military is now a modernized high tech and lethal machine, he said, ‘if anyone goes to war with India, their children will be raised by someone else.’ Taking to Twitter, Chandrasekhar wrote, “India has enemies - These enemies want to stop Indias rise. But they should know this.