Opportunities explored: Aurangzeb meets high-level USPBC team
The delegation comprised leading American investors and representatives from prominent US businesses operating in or exploring opportunities in Pakistan.
The finance minister welcomed the continued interest and investment by US companies in Pakistan and appreciated the participation of US officials and business representatives in the recently held Pakistan Minerals Forum. He underscored the vast potential for expanding Pakistan-US economic cooperation, particularly in key sectors such as energy, minerals, agriculture, and digital services.
Aurangzeb, USPBC team discuss investment
During the meeting, Senator Aurangzeb highlighted the government's commitment to creating a conducive and enabling business environment for both domestic and foreign investors. He informed the delegation that the government was carefully reviewing policy suggestions, including those related to the taxation regime, submitted by industry bodies and business forums—including USPBC—as part of the consultative process ahead of the forthcoming federal budget. He reiterated the government's intention to support sustainable and profitable business growth for US and other international investors in Pakistan. The finance minister also recalled his recent visit to the United States to attend the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings. He briefed the delegation on his extensive engagements during the visit, which included over 70 interactions over a six-day period with a wide range of stakeholders including government counterparts, Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), investment banks, multilateral and bilateral partners, rating agencies, think tanks, and leading international media outlets.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Recorder
11 minutes ago
- Business Recorder
US stocks mixed as markets eye earnings, trade talks
NEW YORK: The Dow fell while the Nasdaq edged higher early Thursday as markets digested mixed corporate earnings and anticipated additional trade deal announcements from President Donald Trump. Google parent Alphabet was among the early gainers, rising about three percent after reporting a whopping $28.2 billion in second-quarter profits as it touted its artificial intelligence offerings. But Tesla dove around eight percent as CEO Elon Musk warned of a rough patch for earnings, while both Chipotle Mexican Grill and Dow Chemical suffered double-digit declines. About 20 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.5 percent at 44,779.70. Wall St extends gains after report of US-EU nearing trade deal The broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.2 percent to 6,371.86, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 0.3 percent to 21,081.49. analyst Patrick O'Hare said Trump's trade announcement with Japan had raised hopes about further deals. 'There is underlying enthusiasm for more trade deals being struck before the August 1 deadline,' O'Hare said. The European Central Bank, meanwhile, held interest rates steady as policymakers waited to see whether the eurozone would strike a deal with Trump.
Business Recorder
5 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Rupee gains against US dollar amid reported crackdown
Rupee's Performance Against US Dollar Since 04 March 2025 The Pakistani rupee strengthened against the US dollar, appreciating 0.19% in the inter-bank market on Thursday. At close, the currency settled at 284.22, a gain of Re0.54. On Wednesday, the currency settled at 284.76. Pakistan's law enforcement agencies have reportedly launched a crackdown against foreign currency smugglers, aiming to prevent the illegal outflow of currencies such as US dollars to neighbouring countries, including Afghanistan and Iran. The raids led to some appreciation of the rupee against US dollar on Wednesday, said Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP) chairman Malik Muhammad Bostan on Wednesday. Internationally, the euro crept toward its highest level in nearly four years on Thursday while the yen held to gains following more progress on trade deals between the United States and its largest trading partners, which in turn lifted the broader market mood. Currencies mostly shrugged off news that US President Donald Trump, a vocal critic of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, will visit the central bank on Thursday. It was not immediately clear whether Trump, who has lambasted Powell repeatedly for not cutting US interest rates more aggressively, would be meeting with the Fed chief. Markets were paying close attention to various tariff negotiations. The European Union and the US are moving towards a trade agreement that could include a 15% US baseline tariff on EU goods and possible exemptions, two European diplomats said on Wednesday. That came on the heels of Washington's trade deal with Tokyo that lowers tariffs on auto imports and spares the latter from punishing new levies on other goods in exchange for a $550 billion package of US-bound investment and loans. Global markets took to the latest developments positively, as risk assets rallied and investors sold the US dollar. The dollar index eased slightly to 97.15. Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, rose on Thursday, buoyed by optimism over US trade negotiations that would ease pressure on the global economy and a sharper-than-expected decline in US crude inventories. Brent crude futures gained 24 cents, or 0.4%, to $68.75 a barrel by 0032 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures climbed 25 cents, or 0.4%, to $65.50 per barrel. Both benchmarks were little changed on Wednesday as markets monitored developments in US-European Union trade talks, following President Donald Trump's tariff deal with Japan.
Business Recorder
7 hours ago
- Business Recorder
French president Macron sues podcaster over claim France's first lady was born male
French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte filed a defamation lawsuit in the U.S. on Wednesday against right-wing influencer and podcaster Candace Owens, centered on her claim that France's first lady is male. The Macrons said in a complaint filed in Delaware Superior Court that Owens has waged a lie-filled 'campaign of global humiliation' to promote her podcast and expand her 'frenzied' fan base. These lies included that Brigitte Macron, 72, was born under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux, the actual name of her older brother, the Macrons said. 'Owens has dissected their appearance, their marriage, their friends, their family, and their personal history — twisting it all into a grotesque narrative designed to inflame and degrade,' the complaint said. 'The result,' the complaint added, 'is relentless bullying on a worldwide scale.' In her podcast on Wednesday, Owens said, 'This lawsuit is littered with factual inaccuracies,' and part of an 'obvious and desperate public relations strategy' to smear her character. Owens also said she did not know a lawsuit was coming, though lawyers for both sides had been communicating since January. A spokesperson for Owens called the lawsuit itself an effort to bully her, after Brigitte Macron rejected Owens' repeated requests for an interview. 'This is a foreign government attacking the First Amendment rights of an American independent journalist,' the spokesperson said. In a joint statement released by their lawyers, the Macrons said they sued after Owens rejected three demands that she retract defamatory statements. 'Ms. Owens's campaign of defamation was plainly designed to harass and cause pain to us and our families and to garner attention and notoriety,' the Macrons said. 'We gave her every opportunity to back away from these claims, but she refused.' High legal standard Wednesday's lawsuit is a rare case of a world leader suing for defamation. U.S. President Donald Trump has also turned to the courts, including in a $10 billion lawsuit accusing The Wall Street Journal of defaming him by claiming he created a lewd birthday greeting for disgraced late financier Jeffrey Epstein in 2003. The Journal said it would defend against that case and had full confidence in its reporting. Macron to raise French defence targets, citing Russia threat In December, meanwhile, Trump reached a $15 million settlement with Walt Disney-owned ABC over an inaccurate claim that a jury found him liable for rape, rather than sexual assault, in a civil lawsuit. To prevail in U.S. defamation cases, public figures must show defendants engaged in 'actual malice,' a tough legal standard requiring proof the defendants knew what they published was false or had reckless disregard for its truth. Owens has more than 6.9 million followers on X and more than 4.5 million YouTube subscribers. Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan The Macrons' lawsuit focuses on the eight-part podcast 'Becoming Brigitte,' which has more than 2.3 million views on YouTube, and X posts linked to it. According to the Macrons, the series spread 'verifiably false and devastating lies,' including that Brigitte Macron stole another person's identity and transitioned to female, and that the Macrons are blood relatives committing incest. The complaint discusses circumstances under which the Macrons met, when the now 47-year-old president was a high school student and Brigitte was a teacher. It said their relationship 'remained within the bounds of the law.' According to the complaint, baseless speculation about Brigitte Macron's gender began surfacing in 2021, and the topic has been discussed on popular podcasts hosted by Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan, who have many conservative followers. In September, Brigitte won a lawsuit in a French court against two women, including a self-described medium, who contributed to spreading rumors about her gender. An appeals court overturned that decision this month, and Brigitte Macron has appealed to France's highest court. The case is Macron et al v Owens et al, Delaware Superior Court, No. N25C-07-194.
