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☆ Sydney, Australia, stabbing: Mall attacker may have targeted women, police say, as more details emerge of his six victims
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-15 | by ( Helen Regan | Sandi Sidhu | Mall Attacker Was Known To Authorities | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The community is devastated in the knowledge of their loss.”Police said Monday they had concluded their examinations of the shopping mall and the crime scene was being handed back to Westfield. More than 100 pieces of evidence were removed and will be forensically examined as part of the investigation, said Yasmin Catley, New South Wales Minister for Police. A woman cries as she comes out of the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping mall after a stabbing incident in Sydney on April 13, 2024. People react outside the Westfield Bondi Junction shopping mall after a stabbing incident in Sydney on April 13, 2024. The number of women killed by violence in Australia has ranged between 43 and 84 each year since Counting Dead Women began tallying deaths in 2012.

Persons: Joel Cauchi, Health Ryan, Cauchi, Karen Webb, ”, ” Webb, “, Lisa Maree Williams, Chris Minns, ” Minn, Yasmin Catley, David Gray, Baby, ‘, Ashlee Good, Good, Health Park, Ashlee, Faraz Tahir, ” Tahir, Adnan Qadir, Tahir, Anthony Albanese, KIIS, Yixuan Cheng, ’, undoubtably, Amy Scott, Scott, Webb, Amy, she’s, Roger Lowe, David GRAY, Lowe, New South Wales Premier Minns, Arthur Organizations: CNN, New South Wales ’, Health, New South Wales Police, ABC, ” Police, Getty, Police, Westfield, New South Wales Minister, “, “ Staff, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Australia, Australian, Embassy, Australia’s, Queensland Police, New South Wales Police Force, Queensland Police Service, New South Wales Premier, Minn Locations: Sydney’s, Bondi, Westfield, New South, New, Bondi Junction, Australia, Queensland, Sydney, AFP, Pakistan

NEW YORK (AP) — Lorrie Moore, Naomi Klein and the Egyptian writer Ahmed Naji are among the finalists for National Book Critics Circle awards. Honorary prizes are going to Judy Blume and to a longtime ally of Blume's in the fight against book bans, the American Library Association. On Thursday, the critics circle announced nominees in seven competitive categories, ranging from fiction to debut book to best translation. The other fiction nominees are Justin Torres' “Blackouts,” winner of the National Book Award last fall; Teju Cole's “Tremor,” Daniel Mason's “North Woods”; and Marie NDiaye's “Vengeance Is Mine,” translated from the French by Jordan Stump. The book critics circle, founded in 1974, consists of hundreds of reviewers and editors from around the country.

Persons: — Lorrie Moore, Naomi Klein, Ahmed Naji, Judy Blume, Blume's, Moore, “, Justin Torres, ” Daniel Mason's “, Marie NDiaye's, Jordan Stump, Grace E, Tina Post's, ” Nicholas Dames, ”, Myriam Gurba's, Naji, Katharine Halls, Matthew Zapruder's “, ” Susan Kiyo Ito's, David Mas, Patricia Wakida, Jonathan Coe's Martin Luther King, Gregg Hecimovich, Hannah Crafts, Anna, Rachel Shteir's, Betty Friedan, Jonny Steinberg's, Winnie, Nelson, Saskia Hamilton's “, ” Kim Hyesoon's, ” Romeo Oriogun's, Robyn Schiff's, Kareem Abdulrahman, Natascha Bruce, Dorothy Tse's ”, Don Mee, Kim Hyesoon's, ” Todd, ” Maureen Freely’s, Tiffany, Indonesian Norman Erikson Pasaribu's, John Leonard, Ariana Benson's, ” Emilie Boone's, ” Victor Heringer's “, ” Tahir Hamut Izgil's, Donovan X, Martin J, Siegel's, Blume, Becca Rothfield, Marion Winik Organizations: American Library Association, Rotten, PEN America, U.S, Washington Locations: Egypt, Indonesian

☆ Why the controversial mullet is having a moment
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-17 | by ( Fawnia Soo Hoo | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Long hair, don’t careThe “modern day” mullet largely originates from David Bowie’s genre-defining and gender-norm defying persona, Ziggy Stardust, Glasscock said. “People from the Continental Congress wore what we would read as a full metal, 1992 mullet,” said Glasscock. (“Hockey hair” was, meanwhile, a popular synonym for mullet at the time, given its prominence among players and fans.) Devin Yalkin/Courtesy A24While playing Kerry Von Erich in “The Iron Claw,” White also wore his dynamic, sweeping mullet off-set — but not entirely by choice. “I was like, ‘I’m sorry, here’s a ponytail holder.”But that dedication may have played an integral part in a mullet revival kicking off 2024.

Persons: Von Erich, ”, Napoleon Bonaparte’s, Paul Barras, Ridley Scott’s “ Napoleon ”, Jessica Glasscock, Tahir Rahim, Napoleon, Aidan Monaghan, Paul Mescal’s, Kristen Stewart’s, Von Erichs, David, Harris Dickinson, Kerry, Jeremy Allen White, Kevin, Zac Efron, They’re, Natalie Shea Rose, hairdos, Rose, David Bowie’s, Ziggy Stardust, Glasscock, Vivienne Westwood, Malcolm McClaren, David Bowie, Aladdin, Joseph, Michael Putland, Procopius, Bowie, Suzi Ronson, “, Yamamoto, “ Bowie, ” Glasscock, “ Napoleon ”, Francesco Pegoretti, Pegoretti, Tahir, mullets, Benjamin Franklin, Joseph Siffred Duplessis, Duran Duran, Bono, —, ’ ” Glasscock, Joe Namath, Nicolas Cage’s, Air ”, David Spade’s, Joe, Rambo, Von Erich mullets, Taghizadeh, Harry, Paul Mescal, Adam, Andrew Scott, Zoe Clare Brown, Mescal, ’ ”, Brown, Devin Yalkin, Kerry Von Erich, ” White, ” Rose, I’m, “ There’s Organizations: CNN, Apple, Globe, Lone Star State, Continental Congress, Sporting, New York Jets, Air Locations: Ridley, Texas, London, Celtic, Nez Perce, Roman, France, Barras, United States

☆ Jordan's King Abdullah: Displacement of Palestinians would be a war crime
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] Jordan's King Abdullah II addresses a press conference, after a dialogue with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, October 17, 2023. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCAIRO, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Jordan's King Abdullah said in his opening speech at the Cairo Peace Summit on Saturday that the forced or internal displacement of Palestinians would be a war crime. The summit is being held as Israel prepares a ground assault on Gaza following Hamas' attack that killed 1,400 people. More than 4,100 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's counteroffensive, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, amid a growing humanitarian crisis. Reporting by Nafisa El Tahir, Writing by Adam MakaryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: King Abdullah II, Olaf Scholz, Annegret, King Abdullah, Nafisa El Tahir, Adam Makary Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Cairo Peace Summit, Israel, Health, Thomson Locations: Berlin, Germany, Rights CAIRO, Cairo, Gaza

☆ This currency is now the world’s top performer, after rebounding from record lows
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A roadside money changer handling Pakistani rupee coins in Karachi, Pakistan. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe Pakistani rupee has rebounded from an all-time low to become the world's top performing currency — and there's still room to strengthen, analysts say. The currency plummeted to a record low of 307 rupees against the greenback in early September, according to data from LSEG. This was largely owed to a government clampdown on a widespread illicit dollar trade. The lofty figure was largely owed to the weakness of Pakistan's currency, reduced domestic fuel and electricity subsidies, and supply chain disruptions, the report said.

Persons: there's, Tahir Abbas Arif Habib, Tahir Abbas, Arif Habib, Abbas, Steve Hanke Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, PKR, South Korean, Federal Investigation Agency, Pakistan, CNBC, Johns Hopkins University, Bank, World Bank, Johns Hopkins Locations: Karachi, Pakistan, LSEG

[1/5] A new building for earthquake survivors is under construction in Diyarbakir, Turkey August 26, 2023. With work underway on a fraction of the planned new buildings in the devastated city of Adiyaman, Kaplan fears a long wait together with his disabled wife and other survivors. One senior government official with direct knowledge of the reconstruction plan said the target could be missed, citing insufficient fresh funding to hold new tenders amid rising costs. They both said the effort had taken a blow when fewer companies bid for the reconstruction tenders after a post-election economic policy U-turn in June sent the currency plunging. "Our budget resources have been prepared for this huge, comprehensive project and can be updated when necessary," Erdogan's office said.

Persons: Stringer, Ismet Kaplan, Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Kaplan, Bayir, Adiyaman, Turkey's, Mehmet Ozhaseki, Arvid Tuerkner, Mert Arslanalp, Erdogan's, Arslanalp, Mehmet Simsek, Simsek, Tahir Tellioglu, Tellioglu, Umit, Ezgi Erkoyun, Nevzat Devranoglu, Jonathan Spicer, Frank Jack Daniel Our Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Reuters, Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects, Coordination Council, European Bank for Reconstruction, Erdogan's AK, Istanbul's Bogazici University, TAG, Construction, Thomson Locations: Diyarbakir, Turkey, Rights ISTANBUL, Adiyaman, Netherlands, Belgium, Syria, Hatay, Malatya, Gaziantep, Istanbul, Ankara

☆ Sudan: Ukraine's special services 'likely' behind strikes on Wagner-backed forces, a Ukrainian military source says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Victoria Butenko Nima Elbagir Gianluca Mezzofiore Tamara Qiblawi Allegra Goodwin Andrew Carey Pallabi Munsi Mahamat Tahir Zene Barbara Arvanitidis Alex Platt Lauren Kent | Victoria Butenko | Nima Elbagir | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +12 min

Covert strikes by Ukraine in Sudan would mark a dramatic and provocative expansion of Kyiv’s theater of war against Moscow. Aside from a string of Ukrainian drone attacks that hit deep inside Russian territory, Ukraine’s ongoing counter-offensive has been focused on the country’s occupied east and south. A high-level Sudanese military source said he had “no knowledge of a Ukrainian operation in Sudan” and did not believe it was true. What appears to be a DJI MAVIC 3 drone can be seen in the videos filming the drone strikes. Six drone strikes targeted pickup trucks driving on Shambat bridge.

Persons: Wagner, Sudan ”, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo –, Abdel Fattah al, Burhan, Wim Zwijnenburg, ” Zwijnenburg, Zwijnenburg, Hemedti, Gen, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, Wagner’s, General Khalifa, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Dmitry Utkin, Prigozhin’s, Prigozhin, Yunus, Bek Yevkurov, Andrey Averyanov, Dmytro Kuleba, ” Kuleba Organizations: Chad CNN, CNN, Sudanese, Kyiv, Rapid Support Forces, Ukrainian, Central African, PAX, AK, CAR, PMC Wagner, Reuters Analysts, Kremlin, Agence France, Presse Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, N'Djamena, Chad, Ukrainian, Sudan’s, Russian, Sudan, Moscow, Omdurman, Khartoum, balaclava, British, al, Zurug, Russia, Africa, Mali, Central African Republic, Libya, Ombada, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Latakia, Bangui, “, Syria, Burkina Faso, St . Petersburg, Eritrea

A currency trader counts Pakistani Rupee notes as he prepares an exchange of U.S dollars in Islamabad, Pakistan December 11, 2017. REUTERS/Caren Firouz/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsKARACHI, Pakistan, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Pakistan's rupee closed at a record low of 299 rupees against the dollar in the interbank market on Tuesday following an easing in import restrictions that has lifted demand for the dollar, central bank data showed. Pakistan imposed import restrictions from 2022 to stem outflows from its shrinking foreign reserves. Traders said the rupee fell 0.6% to an intraday low of 299 against the dollar. "The declining trend is mainly attributable to the ease off in the import restrictions coupled with clearance of backlog for goods and services," he said.

Persons: Caren, Imran Khan, Tahir Abbas, Arif Habib, Ariba Shahid, Edwina Gibbs, Conor Humphries Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Monetary Fund, Traders, Thomson Locations: Islamabad, Pakistan, Rights KARACHI, Karachi

As a child studying in a madrasa in Afghanistan, Mohammad Khalid Tahir dreamed of waging jihad. By the time he was a teenager, he had joined the Taliban and celebrated when they seized power from the U.S.-backed government two years ago. So this spring, he did — but across the border in Pakistan. “Our only expectation is to be martyred,” Mr. Tahir says in a video of him en route to Pakistan that was viewed by The New York Times. As a generation of fighters raised in war now finds itself stuck in a country at peace, hundredsof young Taliban soldiers have crossed illegally into Pakistan to battle alongside an insurgent group, according to Taliban members, local leaders and security analysts.

Persons: Mohammad Khalid Tahir, ” Mr, Tahir, hundredsof Organizations: “, The New York Times Locations: Afghanistan, U.S, Pakistan

☆ A Uyghur’s Lament for a Persecuted People
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Barbara Demick | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

WAITING TO BE ARRESTED AT NIGHT: A Uyghur Poet’s Memoir of China’s Genocide, by Tahir Hamut Izgil. The Uyghur poet Tahir Hamut Izgil’s new memoir, “Waiting to Be Arrested at Night,” is an outlier among books about human rights. When the book opens, in 2009, Izgil is living in Urumqi, a city of nearly five million in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region, the traditional homeland of the country’s persecuted Muslim Uyghur minority. At 40, Izgil is happily married with two daughters, his own home and a robust circle of friends. In short, he’s at the top of his game, a precarious position to maintain and one that requires constant vigilance.

Persons: Tahir Hamut Izgil, Joshua L, Freeman, Tahir Hamut, Izgil, he’s Organizations: Chinese Communist Party Locations: Urumqi, Xinjiang, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey

☆ Opinion | Let the Tragedy in My Homeland Be a Lesson
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Tahir Hamut Izgil | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

For those who have never been through something like this, our tragedy is probably difficult to imagine. When catastrophe came for us, it crept up so gradually that at first we couldn’t see it for what it was. I was born in 1969 in Kashgar, an ancient city in the southwest of our homeland. After attending college in Beijing, I returned to the Uyghur region to work as a teacher, and in my free time continued writing poetry — my lifelong passion. Although the heavy hand of the state could be felt in every corner of our homeland, things were somewhat better in the regional capital.

Persons: — Organizations: Uyghur Islamic Locations: Kashgar, Beijing, Urumqi, Uyghur

☆ Greek migrant boat tragedy: Pakistani boy's fateful journey exposes impossible choice faced by millions
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-14 | by ( Anna Coren Azaz Syed Sophia Saifi Jadyn Sham Helen Regan Rhea Mogul | Anna Coren | Azaz Syed | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

“It will all be OK,” Muhammad Abuzar told him. The boat was carrying up to 750 Pakistani, Syrian, Egyptian and Palestinian refugees and migrants. His uncle had decided to try and make it to Europe and Abuzar saw his chance. More than 600 people drowned on June 14 in what would become one of the deadliest migrant boat tragedies. Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP/Getty ImagesSpeaking to CNN in Pakistan, Mohammad Tahir said his brother Mubasher Sahzad, 29, was also on the boat.

Persons: Pakistan CNN — Pervez Akhtar, “, Muhammad Abuzar, ” Akhtar, gaunt, Abuzar, CNN Akhtar, –, we’ll, he’ll, Akhtar, – Abuzar, ’, “ Papa, Adriana, ” Akhthar, Rana Sanaullah, ”, Angelos Tzortzinis, Mohammad Tahir, Mubasher Sahzad, ” Tahir, Roberto Forin, ” Forin, Mia Sato, ” Sato, Forin, Qayyum Bibi’s, He’s Organizations: Pakistan CNN, CNN, UNICEF, Hellenic Coast Guard, Pakistani Interior Ministry, Medical, Getty, Migration, International Organization, Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency Locations: Gujrat, Pakistan, Pakistan’s, Europe, Italy, Karachi, Dubai, Egypt, Libya, Tripoli, Tobruk, North Africa, Greece's, Greece, Kalamata, AFP, East, Asia, Africa, Islamabad, Lahore, Gujranwala, Rawalpindi, European Union, Bandali, Kashmir, ”

June 30 (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Friday revised its guidance for its Medicare drug price negotiation process, allowing drug companies to publicly discuss the talks, but did not make major changes likely to convince drugmakers to end their suits seeking to halt the program. In September, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will select 10 of the Medicare program's costliest prescription medicines and negotiate price cuts to go into effect for 2026. That guidance precluded drug makers from talking about the negotiations and required them to eventually destroy data received from CMS. Industry group the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) made an additional claim that the price negotiation program violates the U.S. Constitution's Eight Amendment, which protects against excessive fines. The Biden administration's drug pricing reform aims to save $25 billion annually by 2031 through price negotiations for the drugs most costly to Medicare.

Persons: drugmakers, Joe Biden, Chiquita Brooks, LaSure, Bristol Myers, Merck, PhRMA, Tahir Amin, Amin, Michael Erman, Mark Potter, Nick Zieminski Organizations: U.S, U.S . Centers, Medicare, Medicaid Services, Merck & Co, Bristol Myers Squibb, U.S . Chamber of Commerce, CMS, Merck, Bristol, Industry, Pharmaceutical Research, Manufacturers of America, Reuters, Initiative for Medicines, Biden, Thomson Locations: U.S

☆ How the New York City metro area's slow legal weed rollout created a boom in 'gray' market cannabis shops
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Christian Nunley | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The push for legal, recreational marijuana is sweeping across America. The recreational marijuana market is a high-stakes affair. The national cannabis market is estimated to reach $71 billion in sales by 2030, according to data from research firm New Frontier. And the New York state market alone could make up 10% of that, the data forecasts. Watch the video above to find out how the legal cannabis rollout is going in the most populous metropolitan area in the United States, how the push for legal weed is attracting a new class of entrepreneurs and how anti-marijuana activists are trying to slow the fast pace of legal cannabis adoption.

☆ Pakistan’s political crisis will deepen its economic misery
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Julia Horowitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

London CNN —The political unrest that’s engulfed Pakistan since former Prime Minister Imran Khan was arrested earlier this week will complicate efforts to secure a financial lifeline from the International Monetary Fund and exacerbate the country’s economic crisis. Pakistan’s economic meltdownThe political tumult in Pakistan comes as the country grapples with a dire economic outlook. The government has been working with the International Monetary Fund to resume a financing program that’s been stalled since November and expires in June. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a televised address Friday that the country’s economic problems stem from his predecessor. In February, the ratings agency said about 50% of government revenue will need to go to debt interest payments “for the next few years,” compounding economic woes and fanning political discontent.

At about 8.30 a.m. shooting started at the Soba military camp in the south of Khartoum, according to three eyewitnesses and an advisor within Dagalo's paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Burhan's air force was studying where the RSF was gathered, using coordinates provided by the army, two military sources told Reuters, describing plans that have not previously been reported. The RSF, meanwhile, had been locating more and more gunmen at Soba and other camps across Khartoum, the same military sources said. The army also established a small committee of senior generals to prepare for a possible conflict with the RSF, the same sources said. Both the army and the RSF were quick to blame the other publicly for sparking the violence and attempting a power grab.

KARACHI, Pakistan, April 4 (Reuters) - Pakistan's central bank raised its key interest rate by 100 basis points to a record 21% on Tuesday, as the cash-strapped country stepped up its fight against soaring consumer prices. Investors polled by Reuters had expected an even-bigger rate hike of 200 basis point from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), which is facing on consumer price inflation that hit a record annual level of just over 35% in March. Worldwide growth in consumer prices has compounded high inflation in Pakistan caused by a weakening currency, energy tariff increases and elevated food prices due to Ramadan. The SBP has hiked the key rate by cumulatively by 1025 bps since January 2022. In early March, the bank raised its key rate by 300 basis points to 20%, exceeding market expectations, likely to meet a key requirement of the IMF for release of bailout funds.

CAIRO, March 9 (Reuters) - Egypt, one of the world's largest wheat importers, has given notice it will withdraw at the end of June from a decades-old U.N. grains treaty, causing consternation among some other signatories to the convention. Egypt signed the GTC, the only international treaty covering trade in grains, at its inception in 1995, and has been a member of the council that governs it since 1949. Several delegations within the IGC are surprised and sad about the decision," Arnaud Petit, executive director of the International Grains Council, which administers the treaty, told Reuters. Other signatories to the GTC include major grain importers and exporters such as the United States and the European Union. Two sources familiar with the matter, who asked to remain anonymous, told Reuters that Egypt owed the IGC membership fees.

☆ Pakistan current account deficit falls to $0.2 billion in Jan - cenbank
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Ariba Shahid | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KARACHI, Pakistan, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Pakistan’s current account deficit (CAD) dropped to $0.2 billion in January 2023, down 90% from last year as the rupee's depreciation slowed down imports, the central bank said on Monday. During the first seven months of the current fiscal year, the country’s current account deficit decreased by 67% to $3.8 billion, compared with a deficit of $11.6 billion during the same period last year. “This monthly deficit is lowest after 25 months, and lower than expectations,” said Mohammad Sohail, CEO of Topline Securities. The weaker currency has made imports more expensive, effectively slashing them. Reporting by Ariba Shahid in Karachi, Editing by Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ They were convicted for marijuana. Now they’re first in line to sell it legally
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Stefan Sykes | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Stefan Sykes for CNBCTRENTON, N.J. – Tahir Johnson has been arrested for marijuana possession three times. Stefan Sykes for CNBCA conditional license is a provisional license that allows awardees to begin operating while they fulfill requirements for an annual license. Stefan Sykes for CNBC"The generational wealth this will create for my family is surreal," he said. He's sold marijuana since he was Stefan Sykes for CNBCIn Trenton, African Americans represent nearly half of the city's population. Stefan Sykes for CNBC

☆ Pakistan's forex reserves with central bank drop to $3.09 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ISLAMABAD, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank decreased by 16.1% to $3.09 billion in the week ending Jan. 27, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said on Thursday, which analysts said covers less than three weeks of imports. The country is locked in negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to release much-needed money under a stalled bailout programme. The central bank said in a statement that the drop in reserves was due to external debt repayments. Reserves held by commercial banks stood at $5.65 billion, taking total liquid reserves in the country to $8.74 billion, SBP added. The central bank recently removed a cap on exchange rates and the government raised fuel prices by 16%.

Faced with a shortage of US dollars, Pakistan only has enough foreign currency in its reserves to pay for three weeks of imports. Long lines are forming at gas stations as prices swing wildly in the country of 220 million. Pakistan’s currency, the rupee, recently dropped to new lows against the US dollar after authorities eased currency controls to meet one of the IMF’s lending conditions. The country has been spending more on trade than it has brought in, running down its stock of foreign currency and weighing on the rupee’s value. Pakistan's usually bustling ports, like this one in Karachi, have ground to a halt as the country grapples with a severe shortage of foreign currency.

The currency's official value closed at 255.4 rupees against the dollar versus 230.9 on Wednesday, the central bank said. Facing an increasingly acute balance of payments crisis, Pakistan is desperate to secure external financing, with less than three weeks worth of import cover in its foreign exchange reserves. Aside from wanting the government to reduce its budget deficit, the IMF is pushing for it to move to a market-determined exchange rate regime. The foreign exchange companies said on Wednesday that they had removed the cap for the sake of the country, because it was causing "artificial" distortions for the economy. Aside from moving towards a market-determined exchange rate, Islamabad has also announced it will take fiscal measures recommended by the IMF.

☆ Gold could see 'Goldilocks conditions' in 2023, strategist says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailGold could see 'Goldilocks conditions' in 2023, strategist saysMobeen Tahir, investment strategist at WisdomTree, says "what should've been smooth sailing for gold became the perfect storm for gold this year."

☆ World Cup delirium ignites alleys of Pakistan's 'mini Brazil'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Thousands turned out in "Mini Brazil" last Monday when Brazil played Switzerland, sporting the classic yellow and green colours of their favourite team as they gathered in front of large television screens to the sound of raucous music. "Very powerful matches and the Brazil match," said Ashiq Hussain, one of the young players from the academy, adding that he found the matches inspiring. "I went for my job wearing the Brazil shirt, and now at night, I am still wearing the shirt during the match," said another fan, Mohammad Yasin. Brazil's success in that match will draw out thousands more in "Mini Brazil" on Friday, when the team face off against Cameroon. If they draw or win, Brazil will top their Group G.If they lose and Switzerland win against Serbia, the goal difference will decide the top spot.

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