LATEST NEWS UPDATE: 16.05.2012

Pentagon says US keen on mending fences with Pakistan

WASHINGTON: Upbeat on the notion that the blocked NATO supplies are about to restore, the Pentagon on Tuesday said it was working to get over obstacles with Pakistan so as to reinvigorate its partnership with Islamabad.'We, at the end of the day, believe that we share common interests with Pakistan. The relationship, we believe, is getting to where it needs to be, and that s why we re committed to ongoing dialogue not just on GLOCs (ground lines of communication) and on terrorism but across the full range of security issues that we have common interest on,' acting assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, George Little, told reporters. Pakistan closed the routes, known as ground lines of communication, after a Nov. 26 incident in which American troops came under fire from Pakistan. U.S. forces returned fire and killed 21 Pakistani soldiers. Pakistan responded by closing the main overland supply routes for U.S. and NATO forces into Afghanistan.U.S. logistics specialists quickly shifted to other means to supply the forces, but the routes through Pakistan are considered the most direct and most cost-effective.Little said the US has got a team that s been in discussions with the government of Pakistan for some time on the reopening of the ground lines of communication.'We are hopeful that in the very near future they will be reopened. They are important supply routes for us,' he said.'We continue to work closely with the Pakistanis to renew a vibrant relationship that gets over some of the obstacles we ve faced together in the past. On the issue of terrorism, look, this is a common concern for both the United States and Pakistan. The secretary s been very clear on this on repeated occasion,' he noted.'The same terrorists that come after us go after Pakistanis and have been in fact responsible for the deaths of thousands of Pakistanis. So we have common cause on the issue of counter-terrorism. And our counter-terrorism cooperation does continue,' Little said.Responding to a question whether the US would apologize for the November 26 incident that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers, Little remained non-committal.'I would reiterate what we ve said in December, and that is that we ve expressed deep regret and extended our condolences to the Pakistani people, to the Pakistani government and of course to the families of the loved ones who were lost, and of course those who were injured in the incident as well,' he said.'So we have been clear about expressing regret for that incident. And the goal now is to press ahead, move forward and reinvigorate the relationship with our Pakistani partners,' Little said.

Asif Ali Zardari to attend Nato summit in sign of improving US ties
WASHINGTON: President Asif Ali Zardari will attend a summit of Nato leaders in Chicago this weekend, the Pakistani embassy in Washington said on Tuesday.       
The meeting of heads of state from Nato nations is expected to focus on Western plans to gradually withdraw troops from Afghanistan, where the Taliban continues its insurgency over a decade after its government was toppled.
On Tuesday, Nato said it had invited Pakistan to the summit, ending speculation Pakistan might be excluded due to a long period of testy ties severely strained by a Nato air strike that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers in November.
Nadeem Hotiana, a spokesman for the Pakistani Embassy in Washington, said Zardari was now planning to attend the summit, which takes place May 20-21 in President Barack Obama’s hometown of Chicago.


Pakistan joins Global Securities Regulatory Board

ISLAMABAD: The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has been elected to the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOS

State Bank decides to implement IBAN standard in Pakistan

KARACHI: In order to bring about account code standardisation and efficiency in processing of payments for domestic, as well as cross-border transaction

LATEST/BRIEF  NEWS:

·       NAB to investigate PSM corruption case

·       Pentagon upbeat on NATO supply go-ahead

·       FM to continue Pak-US talks: DCC

·       Karachi: MQM worker gunned down in Orangi Town

·       SC transfers Steel Mills corruption enquiry from FIA to NAB

·       PPP workers "hurt" media coverage of Dr Chishtis return

·       Taliban release video tape of Bannu raid

·        Mehdi Hassan in critical condition

·       Malik Riaz offers to pay ransom for Pak hostages

·       Khoja gives shares to workers

·       Pak economy requires immediate reforms

·       Islamic financial system can boost economy

·       Govt asked to issue funds for Thar Coal

·       Institutional support fuels KSE rally

·       SBP to implement IBAN standard

Business News:    Wed, 16 May 2012 -Oil sharply lower in Asia on eurozone worries SINGAPORE: Oil prices fell in Asian trade Wednesday as investors fretted over political uncertainty in the eurozon  -Euro weak on Greek political turmoil TOKYO: The euro remained weak against the dollar in Asian trade on Wednesday as investors worried about political  -GM to drop Facebook ads due to low consumer impact DETROIT: General Motors Co said on Tuesday it will stop advertising on Facebook, even as the social networking web  -Govt all set to hike power tariff by Rs1.25 per unit today ISLAMABAD: The government is trying hard to notify by today (Wednesday) an increase in the power tariff by an aver  -KSE recovers 84 points on fresh buying ISLAMABAD: Share prices at Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) recovered on Tuesday after cautious trading on Monday, spu  -Euro stable in Asian trade amid Greece fears TOKYO: The euro was stable in Asian trade Tuesday after dipping overnight amid fears over a political stalemate in  -Asian markets down as Greece woes deepen HONG KONG: Asian shares tumbled and the euro hit a four-month low on Tuesday amid growing concern about Greece s e  -Oil lower in Asian trade on eurozone worries SINGAPORE: Oil extended losses in Asian trade Tuesday, as the continued political stalemate in Greece as well as b  -Adobe appoints three new board members NEW YORK: Adobe Systems Inc, maker of Photoshop and Acrobat software, has appointed three new members from technology  -Facebook to close IPO books two days early: source NEW YORK: Facebook Inc will close the books on its $10.6 billion initial public  offering on Tuesday, two days ahea  -Euro zone finance ministers dismiss Greek exit "propaganda" BRUSSELS/ATHENS: Euro zone finance ministers dismissed talk of Greece leaving the euro zone as "propaganda and non  -Rupee ends slightly weaker at 90.80/91 to dollar ISLAMABAD: In the currency market, the rupee ended slightly weaker at 90.80/91.00 to the dollar, compared to Friday  -KSE 100-share index ends slightly lower ISLAMABAD: The Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) benchmark 100-share index ended 0.01 percent, or 1.72 points, lower at  -Captain tossed from troubled Yahoo! ship SAN FRANCISCO: Yahoo! boss Scott Thompson stepped down Sunday in the face of controversy about his allegedly inflation  -Saudi says $100 per barrel great price for oil ADELAIDE: Top crude exporter Saudi Arabia wants an oil price of around $100 a barrel and would like to see global Foreign investment plunges KARACHI, May 15: Foreign investment deepened the trend and fell by 63 per cent during the first ten months of the current fiscal. Most disturbing was the net outflow of over $320 million from the once highly attractive  telecommunication sector. The State Bank reported on Tuesday that the foreign private investment fell to just $595 million during the ten months compared to $1621 million in the same period of last year, a fall of over 63 per cent. Foreign direct investment (FDI) fell by 48 per cent to $666.7 million as against $1292.8 million of previous year. Despite recent boom in the equity market with the participation of foreign investors, the net result of the 10 months showed that portfolio investment fell by 121 per cent with a net outflow of $71 million compared to an inflow of $329 million during the same period of last year. While the situation looks extremely disappointing for the country struggling to maintain a balance on its external front with limited resources, the outflow from telecommunication sector could be a serious dent on FDI. The sector has been highly attractive for foreign investment and remained at the top of list in FDI for many years. However, the SBP reported that during the first ten months (July-April) the sector recorded a net outflow of $327 million which was the highest in the list of outflows. The sector had attracted $73 million in first ten months of the previous year. Oil and gas explorations was the only sector which showed strength as the FDI for this sector  improved to $465.5 million, an increase of 12 per cent compared to the same period of last year. The power sector had been an attractive sector, particularly thermal power, displayed a negative picture as the sector noted a net outflow of $25 million compared to a net inflow of $129 million  in the same period of last year. Biggest fall in the inflow was noted in the financial business as it dropped by 75 per cent. According to the SBP, the FDI in financial business remained stuck to $54 million while the  inflow was $223 million during the same period of last year. Transport and trade sectors also witnessed massive fall of 83 per cent and 55 per cent as the FDI was $16 million and $20 million respectively during the ten months compared to last year’s $96 and $45 million of previous year. Chemicals were another attraction for FDI this year as it increased to $78 million from $34 million of last year. Another interesting aspect of the SBP report was the inflows from the countries that showed that FDI from United States was the highest amounting to $196 million followed by UK for $171 million, Italy $152 million and China $113 million.
MOHAMMED SALEEM MANSOORI