Author: i2wtc

ISLAMABAD: Following the recent historic defence agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, the federal government has constituted a high-level 18-member committee to give new momentum and direction to the bilateral economic relationship. According to an official notification, the committee will lead economic negotiations between the two countries under the framework of the Pakistan-Saudi Arabia Economic Partnership. The decision was announced after a high-level review meeting held on October 3. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has approved the formation of the committee, which will oversee dialogue and coordination under the Pakistan-Saudi Economic Framework. The body includes federal ministers as well as senior…

Jason Kim, chief executive officer of Firefly Aerospace, center, during the company’s initial public offering at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York, US, on Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025. Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesFirefly Aerospace stock climbed 12% Monday, after the space company said it’s buying defense technology contractor SciTec for $855 million as it looks to strengthen its national security offering.The deal, announced Sunday, is slated to close at the end of the year and includes $300 million cash and $555 million in Firefly shares.”These capabilities significantly enhance our ability to deliver integrated, software-defined solutions for critical national…

A person wearing an outfit inspired by The Eras Tour poses in front of “The Official Release Party of a Showgirl” posters at an AMC theater to celebrate the release of Taylor Swift’s new album “The Life of a Showgirl” in New York City, U.S., Oct. 3, 2025. Kylie Cooper | ReutersTaylor Swift gave the box office a boost this weekend.In partnership with AMC, the singer-songwriter brought a 90-minute movie to cinemas for one weekend only to celebrate the release of her 12th album, “The Life of a Showgirl.”The three-day event tallied an estimated $33 million domestically, the biggest album…

COLOMBO: India captain Harmanpreet Kaur refused to shake hands with her Pakistani counterpart Fatima Sana at the toss and after winning the Women’s World Cup cricket match on Sunday, mirroring the actions of her country’s men’s teams at the Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) last month. Kaur’s gesture, or a lack thereof, came amid a lingering political frost between India and Pakistan that overshadowed the cricketing spectacle at Colombo’s R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, where India thrashed Pakistan by 88 runs. There were no formal greetings between the teams before the national anthems, at the start of…

Alistair Berg | Digitalvision | Getty ImagesOnline holiday spending in the U.S. is expected to jump 5.3% year over year to $253.4 billion as consumers seek discounts and even enlist the help of artificial intelligence-powered chatbots, according to an Adobe Analytics report released Monday.Yet that growth would still be slower than the year-ago holiday season, when online sales rose 8.7% from Nov. 1 to Dec. 31, the company said. Adobe’s data tracks more than 1 trillion visits to U.S. retail websites, 100 million unique items and 18 different product categories.That growth is also below the 10-year average of roughly 13%…

An aerial drone photo taken on Oct. 6, 2025 shows the construction site of a highway in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province. Many workers have been standing fast at their posts and fulfilling their duties during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)Constructors work at the construction site of a highway in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province, Oct. 6, 2025. Many workers have been standing fast at their posts and fulfilling their duties during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)An aerial drone photo taken on Oct. 6, 2025 shows the construction site of…

PESHAWAR: The controversy over the withdrawal of security from Awami National Party (ANP) central president Aimal Wali Khan has deepened, with conflicting claims from the provincial government and the party despite the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa chief minister’s reported directives to ensure his protection. According to ANP, all security personnel assigned to Aimal Wali Khan were withdrawn despite Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s explicit instructions to maintain his security. The party accused the provincial police of defying the chief minister and acting on the orders of the federal interior ministry. ANP spokesperson Ehsanullah, in a strongly worded statement, said the move amounted to…

Sam Altman, chief executive officer of OpenAI, left, and Lisa Su, chair and chief executive officer of Advanced Micro Devices, arrive for a Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee hearing in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, May 8, 2025.Nathan Howard | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesOpenAI and Advanced Micro Devices have reached a deal that could see Sam Altman’s company take a 10% stake in the chipmaker. AMD stock skyrocketed more than 25% Monday during premarket trading following the news.OpenAI will deploy 6 gigawatts of AMD’s Instinct graphics processing units over multiple years and across multiple generations of hardware, the companies…

KARACHI: The notification of the National Tariff Policy (NTP) 2025-2030 at the start of the current fiscal year has sparked significant debate between those who call for a more open and freer trading economy with minimal government interventions and those who recommend protection for ‘infant industries’ to promote domestic industrialisation. The Economic Advisory Group stands at the forefront in advocating for tariff reforms. Pakistan’s tariff regime, plagued with high tariffs, low productivity levels, and poor investment rates coupled with low uptake of bank loans from the private sector, suggests that there is a much-needed rethinking of trade strategies. It is…

Pakistan is weighing options for the future of its iconic Roosevelt Hotel in New York, including demolishing the century-old structure to build a skyscraper, as part of the government’s broader privatisation and reform commitments to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), US outlet Bloomberg reported on Saturday. Muhammad Ali, the prime minister’s adviser on privatisation, confirmed to Bloomberg that multiple possibilities were under consideration. “The government is keen on a joint venture where Pakistan will contribute the land and the partner will bring in the equity,” he said in Islamabad. “The other option is to retain the hotel if it makes…