Author: i2wtc

LAHORE: Political space for opposition parties, particularly the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), may have further shrunk after the establishment bolstered its ties with the West, as analysts suggest that the beleaguered party’s chances of making a political comeback during the current regime were virtually nonexistent.  However, they caution that the budding relationship with the Trump administration could be a volatile, double-edged sword for the powers that be. Former Punjab caretaker chief minister and senior political analyst Hasan Askari said that PTI has no political future under the current dispensation, which he described as being firmly controlled by a powerful establishment.  According…

Four years ago, financial advisor Ric Edelman went out on a limb in saying everyone should hold cryptocurrencies. But how much? Low single digits was his recommendation.In his “The Truth about Crypto” book in 2021, Edelman said as low as a 1% allocation was reasonable.A lot has changed.This week, Edelman said financial advisors should be recommending anywhere from 10% to 40% allocations to cryptocurrencies, and he is aware it’s quite a shift in his own thinking.”Today I am saying 40%, that’s astonishing,” he told CNBC’s Crypto World in an interview. “No one has ever said such a thing.”But the “why”…

US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House on June 27, 2025, in Washington, DC. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds | Afp | Getty ImagesPresident Donald Trump said Friday he may not stick to the deadline in early July when massive U.S. tariffs are set to snap back into effect on a slew of countries.”No, we can do whatever we want,” Trump said at the White House when asked if his deadline was set in stone. “We could extend it. We could make it shorter.” The question had specifically been about July 9,…

Strong ties with the United States will not mean unconditional support for its policies, especially when they are unjust, said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Friday.  Briefing the press in Islamabad, the deputy PM emphasised that Pakistan was aware that Iran would not remain passive after the US bombed three of its nuclear facilities.  Dar was speaking in reference to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting, where the 12-day Iran-Israel war was a primary topic of discussion.  He highlighted Pakistan’s efforts to ensure that a special session on Iran was held, which was agreed upon by the…

People watch as the logo for Coinbase, the biggest U.S. cryptocurrency exchange, is displayed on the Nasdaq MarketSite jumbotron at Times Square in New York on April 14, 2021.Shannon Stapleton | ReutersCoinbase is the top performer in the S&P 500 in June, boosted by positive regulatory updates, product launches and, of course, its very inclusion in the benchmark stock index at the end of May.The crypto exchange’s outperformance in the S&P 500 extends back to the April 8 market low, just after President Donald Trump’s initial sweeping tariffs announcement sent stocks sinking.Coinbase is now on pace for its best month…

President Donald Trump on Friday said the United States is immediately “terminating ALL discussions on Trade with Canada” in response to Ottawa’s decision to impose a digital services tax on American tech firms.Trump’s surprise announcement on Truth Social accused Canada of “copying the European Union” with the “egregious” tax.”We will let Canada know the Tariff that they will be paying to do business with the United States of America within the next seven day period,” Trump added.Read Trump’s full post:”We have just been informed that Canada, a very difficult Country to TRADE with, including the fact that they have charged…

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed at another historic high on Friday as investor confidence soared following the approval of federal budget for FY26. The benchmark KSE-100 index surged 2,332.60 points, or 1.91%, to settle at 124,379. “The market rebounded strongly from Thursday’s brief profit-taking phase, with bullish momentum prevailing throughout the session,” noted Ali Najib, Deputy Head of Trading at Arif Habib Ltd. Institutional investors led the rally amid portfolio rebalancing and optimism about the economic direction set by the newly approved budget. Investor sentiment was further buoyed by robust Roshan Digital Account (RDA) inflows, which reached $10.38 billion…

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media, after the U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to the power of federal judges by restricting their ability to grant broad legal relief in cases as the justices acted in a legal fight over President Donald Trump’s bid to limit birthright citizenship, in the Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington D.C., June 27, 2025. Ken Cedeno | ReutersPresident Donald Trump on Friday called New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani “a communist,” and said the Big Apple will become “a communistic city” if he is elected mayor in…

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has overturned its July 12 ruling regarding reserved seats, accepting review petitions and upholding the Peshawar High Court’s decision. As a result, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has lost its reserved seats, which will now be transferred to the government coalition. The constitutional bench of the Supreme Court concluded hearings on the case of reserved seats on Friday. The hearing was conducted by a 10-member bench, instead of the originally planned 11-member bench, with Justice Aminuddin Khan presiding. Following the hearing, the bench reserved its judgment and, after a short break, issued a concise written verdict of…

Nike stock soared 17% on Friday after the company said the worst of its struggles are behind it, following a better than feared fiscal fourth-quarter earnings report. Nike on Thursday reiterated it would take the biggest financial hit from its turnaround plan during the quarter, soothing investors who worried President Donald Trump’s tariff hikes on key Nike manufacturing hubs like China and Vietnam would derail the company’s comeback.Nike posted a poor fourth quarter, as sales dropped 12%, net income plunged 86% and profit margins dwindled. But CEO Elliott Hill stressed the company has emerged from the worst of its slump, and…