According to Minister Counselor for Public Affairs at the U.S. Embassy Islamabad, Lisa K. Heller, the Trump administration will increase its support for educational opportunities and student exchange programs for Pakistani students of different backgrounds. The US embassy, in collaboration with Education USA, organized International Education Week (IEW) from November 18th to 22nd to encourage Pakistani youngsters to study in the US.
During a meeting of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) core committee in Islamabad, it was decided that Pakistan will raise the incident of the Holy Quran’s desecration in Norway with Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). Deeming all such provocative activities as unacceptable, Prime Minister Imran Khan directed Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to to immediately contact OIC and inform it of the country’s reservations.
In a huge blow, PayPal has informed the government officials that Pakistan is not in its road map for the next three years citing inadequate business opportunities. Ministry of Information Technology’s delegation visited the PayPal headquarters last month in a bid to convince the higher-ups of the payment gateway as it would be highly beneficial for the local freelancers.
Iran is selling tomatoes to Pakistan at $1.10 per kilogram. The price stands near Rs. 160-170 per kg for Pakistani importers, much higher than the locally produced tomatoes. Due to lack of trade with India the price of tomatoes soared up as shortage increased in the market and the price reached as high as Rs 350 per kg. The increase in price prompted the government to take remedial measures.
The trade ties between Pakistan and the United States are set to witness a new record this year as U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Imran Khan have reaffirmed their commitment for a stronger relationship, said the White House. Recalling their conversations in Washington and New York, the two leaders agreed to deepen bilateral collaboration, including at relevant multilateral fora.
A US-based defense weekly, Jane’s 360 has revealed that Pakistan now possesses a state-of-the-art radar system. The defense analysts have identified a JY-27A counter-very-low-observable (CVLO) radar at Mianwali Air Base of Pakistan Air Force. The jamming-resistant and highly mobile VHF radar uses an active phased array antenna capable of detecting stealth aircraft like F-22 from a distance of 500 km.
Ministry of Information Technology (MoIT) is all set to manufacture SIM and smart cards locally for the first time in history, on the instructions of Prime Minister Imran Khan. The MoIT has acquired the technology to manufacture these cards in Pakistan adhering to the quality standards as they were being imported from China and other countries previously, which would help reduce the imports bill of the telecom sector.
Pakistan has won the World Junior Scrabble Championship 2019 in England. Young Imad Ali was the find of the tournament, who became the youngest junior world champion to have lifted the trophy at the age of 13.He maintained the first position in all three days of the competition by winning 17 out of 20 matches he played. Pakistan players maintained dominance in other ther age groups as well.
Skyrocketing shop rents in major Pakistani shopping malls is forcing menswear apparel businesses to operate online and reduce number of shops. The rent of shops in big shopping malls in Pakistan was higher than the rent charged in US. A shop measuring 1,000 square metres anywhere in North America could be rented for $5,000 per month but in Pakistan rent is much higher.
After a gap of more than four years, Pakistan posted $99 million current account surplus in October. The latest data released by State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed recovery from long prevailing deficits, but four-month current account position still showed a deficit of $1.5 billion. Current account deficit in last fiscal year, clocked in at $12.75bn, down 36 per cent from record-high $19.9bn in FY18.