Month: April 2020

ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Thursday worked out the impact of losses of pandemic COVID-19 virus on some sectors of the national economy and shared the initial assessment that total losses stood at the whopping figure of Rs 2.5 trillion, reported The News. Official estimates first time shared with a selected group of reporters in the aftermath of the outbreak of coronavirus reveal that under moderate restrictions, employment loss could be up to 12 million, around 20% of the employed labour force of the country. The total labour force in the…

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LONDON: Crude oil futures jumped 10% on Thursday after US President Donald Trump said he expected Saudi Arabia and Russia to reach a deal soon to end their price war. Brent crude futures rose more than 11% in early trade. By 1132 GMT, Brent was up 10.75%, or $2.66, to $27.40, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 10.09%, or $2.05, to $22.36. Trump said he had talked recently with the leaders of both Russia and Saudi Arabia and believed the two countries would make a deal to end…

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The “restrictions” imposed in the country will continue for two weeks more — April 1 to 14 — to curb the spread of coronavirus, Federal Minister for Planning and Development Asad Umar said Wednesday. The decision to extend the period of the restrictions was taken in a meeting of the National Coordination Committee (NCC). “The meetings of the NCC will be held regularly before 14 April to review the situation,” Umar said, while addressing a press conference alongside Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza and…

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When the US Congress passed a US$2-trillion economic-stimulus plan on 27 March, $25 billion in economic aid for passenger airlines was just a small piece of it. But for environmentalists and their allies in Washington DC, it was a setback. The airline industry is reeling from travel bans and government lockdowns designed to contain the new coronavirus: more than 1.1 million flights have been cancelled globally up to the end of June, and the industry is projecting revenue losses of more than $250 billion this year. Democrats in the US…

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China started processing in March applications from its companies to waive import tariffs on U.S. energy goods as part of the Sino-U.S. Phase 1 trade deal and they have since bought liquefied natural gas (LNG) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from the United States. The world’s largest crude importer is boosting U.S. energy imports at a time when the world is swamped with excess supply after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and Russia failed to extend production cuts and as measures to curb the spread of the…

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