Author: i2wtc
ISLAMABAD: In his dissenting note in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) judges transfer case, Supreme Court judge Shakeel Ahmad has disagreed with the contention of IHC petitioner judges that intelligence agencies have a role in matters pertaining to appointment or transfer of judges. In February this year, three judges from different high courts were transferred to the IHC, a move that was followed by changes in the IHC judges’ seniority list. Five IHC judges first file representations against the transfer to the then IHC chief justice Aamer Farooq. Upon rejection of the representations, the judges approached the SC against the…
ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has once again raised the issue of imposing additional taxes on fertiliser and introducing an excise duty on the use of pesticides to partly offset a shortfall in the annual tax target, which the government has requested to defer until next year. The global lender has asked the government to trigger the contingency measure by doubling the federal excise duty rate on fertiliser to 10% and introducing a 5% federal excise duty on pesticides, according to government sources involved in the negotiations with the IMF. Sources said that during ongoing discussions, the IMF team…
Taro Aso, Japan’s former deputy prime minister and finance minister, delivered a speech during an ordinary session at the lower house of the parliament in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday, Jan. 20, 2020. Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesBloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesSanae Takaichi, who is expected to become Japan’s next prime minister, chose former premier and party heavyweight Taro Aso on Tuesday as vice president of her ruling party, a move some analysts saw as a restraining force against big fiscal spending.Takaichi also chose former finance minister Shunichi Suzuki as secretary-general of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), a job that wields huge influence in party affairs, in a line-up of key party posts announced on Tuesday.The announcements came after the…
A Pakistan-born German scientist has discovered new life-supporting molecules in the ocean beneath the icy shell of Enceladus, a moon that revolves around Saturn – the jewel planet of our solar system. Astrobiologist Dr Nozair Khawaja of Freie Universität Berlin in Germany, and lead author of the study, published a research paper on October 1 in Nature Astronomy. His team painstakingly examined the vast data collected by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft and identified complex organic molecules in ice grains emitted from geyser-like jets at the moon’s ocean floor. A large number of snowflakes and gases, somehow released from the moon’s icy surface through cracks…
Delegations from Israel and Hamas began indirect negotiations in Egypt on Monday on a plan backed by US President Donald Trump to end the Gaza war, confronting thorny issues such as Israel’s military withdrawal and Hamas’ disarmament. Both Israel and Hamas have endorsed the broad principles of Trump’s proposal, which envisions a ceasefire, hostage releases, and massive humanitarian aid to Gaza — the closest the two sides have come to halting the conflict. The plan is also backed by Arab and Western states. Trump has urged rapid progress toward a final deal, calling the talks “the closest yet” to ending…
Wells Fargo Securities’ Ohsung Kwon expects artificial intelligence to dominate third-quarter earnings season. “Outside of AI, I’m not really excited about anything,” Kwon, the firm’s chief equity strategist, told CNBC’s ” Fast Money ” on Monday. He expects demand for AI to be the chief reason why results will exceed Wall Street estimates. He contends the sector is not in a bubble and said investors should stick with the group because fundamentals are driving the recent gains. According to Kwon, the AI trade is still in its early innings. “I think AI matters more than the Fed,” he said. Kwon’s…
Vehicles are pictured on the Ring Expressway in Guangzhou, south China’s Guangdong Province, on Oct. 1, 2025. (Xinhua/Lu Hanxin)BEIJING, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) — This National Day holiday, Xu Yuan took to the road in an electric vehicle, enjoying a smooth and stress-free 300-kilometer journey made possible by China’s rapidly expanding charging network.”The charging is incredibly fast now, taking just 10 minutes for 60 kilowatt-hours,” Xu said. “With chargers available along the entire route, I could drive without any concern about range.”Xu’s experience reflects a broader shift in China’s holiday travel. An increasing number of travelers are choosing new energy vehicles…
The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed sharply lower on Monday as heavy profit-taking dragged the KSE-100 index down by 1,237.67 points, or 0.73%, to settle at 167,752.40. The sell-off came amid investor caution following reports that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) raised concerns over discrepancies in trade data reported by Pakistan Single Window (PSW) and Pakistan Revenue Automation Limited (PRAL), putting recent macroeconomic progress under scrutiny. Analysts termed the phase as a temporary pause and expected a renewed investor confidence to reurn soon. Read: PSX maintains record-breaking drive Market experts attributed the drop to a combination of domestic and geopolitical factors.…
An anti-terrorism court in Islamabad issued arrest warrants for senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leaders Omar Ayub, Sheikh Waqas Akram and Zartaj Gul in connection with the Sangjani rally case. Judge Tahir Abbas Supra of the Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) heard the case on Monday and ordered police to arrest the three Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders and produce them before the court. During the proceedings, the court rejected Omar Ayub’s request for exemption from personal appearance. “These individuals have not appeared even once in this case,” the judge remarked. PTI leaders were represented in court by advocates Sardar Muhammad Masroor Khan, Amna Ali…
A full moon is pictured near Jingshan Park in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 6, 2025. Monday marks this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival, which is celebrated annually on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. People across China admire the full moon to celebrate the traditional holiday. (Xinhua/Liu Jinhai)A drone photo taken on Oct. 6, 2025 shows a full moon over the sky in north China’s Tianjin. Monday marks this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival, which is celebrated annually on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. People across China admire the full…