ISLAMABAD: The Privatisation Commission announced on Thursday that the consortium led by Arif Habib Corporation Limited has notified it of its intent to acquire the remaining 25 per cent equity stake in Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited (PIACL), paving the way for full private-sector ownership of the national carrier.

It said that the total private-sector investment in the transaction was expected to amount to approximately Rs180 billion, comprising a minimum of Rs55 billion payable to the government as divestment proceeds and Rs125bn to be injected as fresh equity into PIACL to support the airline’s recapitalisation.

“The planned equity injection will support fleet expansion and modernisation, route development, and improvements in customer service and operational systems,” the commission said.

It said that management control was expected to be transferred on or before May 25, the first closing date announced by the Privatisation Commission, subject to the fulfilment of conditions set out in the Share Purchase and Subscription Agreement (SPSA) signed on January 29.

“The notice of intent to acquire the remaining 25pc equity stake (call option) has been accompanied by the requisite standby letter of credit and will be exercised in accordance with the terms of the SPSA,” it said.

It added that the Privatisation Commission, the consortium, the government of Pakistan, and PIACL were working jointly to fulfil the conditions precedent ahead of the first closing.

The consortium comprises Arif Habib Corporation Limited, Fatima Fertiliser Company Limited, Lake City Holdings (Private) Limited, The City School (Private) Limited, AKD Group Holdings (Private) Limited, and Fauji Fertiliser Company Limited.

Earlier this week, the consortium submitted a standby letter of credit and a bank guarantee to the Priva­tisation Commission to acquire the remaining shares from the government.

The consortium had acquired a 75pc stake in the national flag carrier for Rs135bn in December 2025.

The first direct commercial flight between the United States and Venezuela departed a bit early on Thursday on its way to the capital of the South American country, seven years after the US Homeland Security Department ordered an indefinite suspension, citing security concerns. The resumption of a commercial flight between the two countries comes months after the US capture of then-president Nicolas Maduro in a stunning night-time raid on his residence in Caracas in early January. It also comes...

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday decided to extend the fuel subsidy for motorcyclists, and public and goods transport by one month.

According to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the premier decided to continue providing relief to the economically vulnerable sections of society during the current situation.

It said that the prime minister “had decided to extend fuel subsidy given last month to motorcyclists, public and goods transporters by one more month”.

He also directed transporters not to increase travel and freight fares. He further issued instructions to maintain “effective monitoring” of relief measures.

According to the statement, PM Shehbaz vowed to continue the government’s relief efforts, stressing that “providing relief to the common man remained the government’s top priority”.

“The people will not be left alone under any circumstances,” the premier asserted, hoping that the “regional situation will improve soon so that fuel prices can stabilise”.

The subsidies were part of the targeted relief measures announced earlier this month for bikers, farmers and transporters to cushion the impact of global oil price shocks amid the US-Israel war on Iran.

The measures included a subsidy of Rs100 per litre for two-wheeler users, capped at 20 litres per month for three months. It was also announced that trucks carrying 80-85pc of food items would receive direct support of Rs70,000 per month, large transport vehicles would be given Rs80,000 per month and inter-city public service vehicles would receive Rs100,000 per month to help keep fares stable.

The provinces have taken the lead in administering subsidised fuel quotas. Altogether, the provinces are pooling around Rs200bn for three months on the pattern of their National Finance Commission (NFC) shares — Rs100bn or so from Punjab, Rs51-Rs52bn from Sindh, Rs15bn from Khyber Pakhtu­nkhwa and about Rs8-Rs9bn from Balochistan.

A day earlier, the premier, while addressing a meeting of the federal cabinet, said consultations were underway with provinces for the extension of fuel subsidies. He also said that the country’s weekly oil bill had reached $800 million amid the oil crisis from around $300m prior to the outbreak of the conflict.

PESHAWAR/ LAHORE: Justices Babar Sattar and Mohsin Akhtar Kayani will begin presiding over proceedings at the Peshawar High Court (PHC) and Lahore High Court (LHC), respectively, in the coming week following their recent transfers from the Islamabad High Court (IHC).

Their transfers, along with that of IHC judge Saman Rafat Imtiaz to the Sindh High Court, were approved by the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) on April 28 and notified by the law ministry on April 29 amid criticism from lawyers’ bodies.

On Thursday, the names of Justices Sattar and Kayani were included in the rosters of the high court courts to which they have been transferred.

The LHC’s revised roster for May 4 to July 4 shows that Justice Kayani will be presiding over proceedings as judge on a single bench at the court’s principal seat.

The roster, notified by Additional Registrar (Judicial) Shabbir Hussain Shah, shows that 27 single benches and nine division benches have been constituted at the principal seat for this period.

Meanwhile, according to the PHC’s roster for May 4-7, Justice Sattar will be presiding over proceedings as part of a division bench at the court’s principal seat on Monday.

The roster, approved by PHC Chief Justice SM Attique Shah, lists nine single benches and just one division bench, headed by Justice Wiqar Ahmad and also including Justice Sattar.

The judges were transferred under Article 200 of the Constitution. Under clause (1) of Article 200 of the Constitution, the president may transfer a high court judge from one high court to another on the recommendation of the JCP. Clause (2) provides that the seniority of a transferred judge shall be reckoned from the date of his or her initial appointment.

Justice Kayani, who was IHC’s senior puisne judge, has lost his seniority and been relegated to the 12th spot on the LHC seniority list. His transfer has also increased the number of sitting judges at the LHC to 41 against a sanctioned strength of 60.

Justice Sattar was appointed as an additional IHC judge on December 30, 2020 and confirmed as a permanent judge around a year later. He was number three in terms of seniority at the IHC. But at the PHC, he is seventh in terms of seniority.

With the transfer of Justice Sattar, the number of judges in the PHC has risen to 21 against the sanctioned strength of 30.

In its April 28 meeting, the JCP also decided that any vacancy arising as a result of the transfer of judges from the IHC would be filled through transfer only, and such slots would not be treated as vacancies for initial appointment.

Subsequently, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council had expressed reservations over the transfers and demanded that the transfer of a judge from any other high court to the PHC should be made on a reciprocal basis. The council believed that the reciprocal transfer of judges would neither affect the overall strength of the PHC judges nor would it affect the rights of the province.

Transfer of judges

Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi, who also serves as chairman of the JCP, had earlier raised serious constitutional concerns over the prospect of transferring judges from the IHC.

In his response to informal requests by IHC Chief Justice Sardar Mohammad Sarfraz Dogar, the CJP had warned that such transfers could undermine federalism and equitable representation, reducing judicial appointments to temporary and reversible administrative decisions.

The transfers from the IHC follow an amendment to Article 200 of the Constitution, which empowers the JCP to recommend such transfers without requiring the consent of the judges concerned.

Prior to the amendment, introduced through the 27th Constitution Amendment, a judge’s consent was mandatory for transfer from one high court to another. The revised provision has now vested this authority in the JCP.

It also stipulates that a judge who refuses to accept a transfer may face proceedings under Article 209 before the Supreme Judicial Council.

The transferred judges were among the six who had, in a startling letter written to SJC members in March 2024, accused the country’s intelligence apparatus of interference in judicial affairs, including attempts to pressure judges through abduction and torture of their relatives and secret surveillance inside their homes.

They were also among the five judges who had formally opposed in February 2025 the then-potential transfer of then-LHC Justice Dogar, warning that his elevation as the IHC chief justice would violate constitutional procedures and judicial norms.

Nevertheless, Justice Dogar was appointed as the acting IHC chief justice on Feb 13, 2025. The next day, he took the oath in a ceremony where all IHC judges were invited, but five of them — including those being transferred — did not attend the ceremony and boycotted it.

Following the development, the IHC went through a major administrative restructuring, which notably reduced the authority of senior puisne judge Justice Kayani — who previously held key decision-making roles — following amendments to the high court rules.

The IHC Administration Com­mittee, previously comprising the chief justice, the senior puisne judge and a senior judge, was restructured to include CJ Dogar and two of his nominees. This reconstitution significantly altered the court’s decision-making authority.

Justice Dogar later took his oath as the IHC CJ on July 8, 2025. And the five IHC senior judges who had opposed his transfer were sidelined in the subsequent reshuffling of key committees.

In September last year, the five judges had submitted separate petitions to the Supreme Court together against a number of issues affecting the court, from the composition of benches to rosters to case transfers.

A Ugandan-American man was sentenced to death on Thursday over the murders of four young children he stabbed to death at a kindergarten in Uganda’s capital. Christopher Okello Onyum was arrested on April 2 as he tried to flee the day care centre in Kampala where he murdered the children aged 15 months to two-and-a-half years. Prosecutors said Onyum, who holds Ugandan and US citizenship, confessed to the crime, believing the “human sacrifice” would help him become rich, though he eventually...

The Paris prosecutor’s office has opened an ⁠investigation into ⁠a 15-year-old, suspected of having ⁠hacked the country’s ID agency and trying to sell the data of millions of French people on the dark web this month, it said on Thursday. The teenager, whose identity ‌was not revealed, was detained on April 25 and held in police custody for questioning after he was suspected of hiding behind the nickname “breach3d”, a hacker who had put on sale on hacker forums between 12 million and 18 million...

ISLAMABAD: Despite a healthy primary balance of 3.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) at home, the Ministry of Finance on Thursday warned that Pakistan’s external sector may be facing risks owing to emerging global uncertainties and regional supply disruptions amid a higher rate of inflation.

“External demand may remain supportive in some markets but the balance of risk becomes less favourable than in a pre-war setting,” the ministry said in its Monthly Economic Update and Outlook for April 2026.

It said the ongoing Middle East conflict was posing new risks and heightened uncertainty regarding the macroeconomic outlook.

The ministry forecast April’s inflation rate — measured by the consumer price index — at 8 to 9pc, significantly higher than 7.3pc in March.

It highlighted that the overall primary surplus in the first eight months of the current fiscal year was recorded at 3.3pc of GDP (Rs4.319 trillion) as compared to 3pc (Rs3.452tr) last year.

During July-March Fiscal Year 2026, the Federal Board of Revenue’s tax collection grew by 10.1pc to Rs9.306tr, the ministry said.

It said this growth was driven by both direct and indirect taxes, which grew by 12.4pc and 7.9pc, respectively. Within indirect taxes, sales tax, customs duties and federal excise duty increased by 8.5pc, 3pc and 13.3pc, respectively.

It said the government’s strategy to optimise revenue collection and improve expenditure management was reflected in the overall fiscal position during the July-February FY2026, with a deficit of 0.1pc of GDP (Rs161.2 billion) compared to 2.2pc of GDP (Rs2.524bn) during the corresponding period last year.

Net federal revenue increased by 10.1ppc to reach Rs7.463tr, which was contributed to by growth in both tax and non-tax revenues by 10.6pc and 7.7pc, respectively.

“Total federal expenditure declined by 10.9pc to Rs9.232tr. This contraction was mainly driven by curtailment of current expenditure, which fell by 11.4pc on account of 25pc decline in markup expenditure,” it said.

The ministry said the economy completed its third quarter of the year on a stable footing, underpinned by macroeconomic stability and gradually strengthening growth momentum.

On the domestic front, the manufacturing sector continued its growth impetus while the external sector witnessed three consecutive monthly current account surpluses driven by strong remittances and rising IT exports, it added.

|Inflation inched up but remained within the annual target. Prudent fiscal management enabled continued improvement in the fiscal position. Timely Eurobond repayment, successful International Monetary Fund staff-level agreement and Fitch’s B- rating with stable outlook further reinforced external credibility, reflecting continued reform efforts and overall positive direction of the economy,” it said.

It highlighted that the ongoing Middle East conflict was posing new risks and heightened uncertainty regarding the macroeconomic outlook amid escalating energy costs, yet Pakistan’s economy appeared relatively better positioned than in previous episodes of external stress to manage these emerging challenges effectively.

The ministry also said that the Bureau of Emigration and Overseas Employment registered 50,506 workers in March 2026, showing a reduction of almost 14pc as compared to 58,555 in March, 2025.

According to the ministry, despite prevailing geopolitical uncertainties, key macroeconomic indicators had remained stable, including sustained growth momentum in large-scale manufacturing, particularly reflected in a broad-based recovery in the automobile sector, and rising cement dispatches, pointing to improving domestic demand.

“Based on this momentum, economic activity is expected to remain firm,” it said, but hastened to add that “amid ongoing supply chain constraints, inflation is anticipated to remain within the range of 8-9pc for April 2026”.

It added that “despite the potential risk posed by Middle East war and consequently global commodity prices rise and supply chain disturbance, the external position is likely to remain stable, underpinned by higher remittance inflows and IT exports”.

“Overall, the economy appears well-positioned to continue its growth trajectory, supported by the strengthening of macroeconomic fundamentals vis-à-vis appropriate and swift policy response to minimise the adverse impacts,” the ministry said.

The ministry said that given ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and the unclear path toward a durable settlement, the conflict continued to reverberate through disrupted oil supply and pricing, reinforcing volatility in global energy markets.

“Despite global emerging uncertainties, major trading partners of Pakistan’s economy, like the US, are showing resilience,” it added.

Likewise, it said that Pakistan’s major export destinations (except China, showing persistent moderation in growth momentum for several months) were hovering near their long-term potential.

Amazon said on Thursday that restoring cloud computing operations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which were damaged in the conflict in the Middle East, is expected to take several months.

Amazon’s data centres in the region were hit by Iranian retaliatory drone strikes in early March, amid the conflict, disrupting cloud services and making a recovery “prolonged”.

When asked if the latest update was related to a new incident, an Amazon spokesperson said that the latest update dated April 30 related to the previous operational issues in March.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world’s largest cloud computing provider, serving a global client base.

Its key customers include companies such as Netflix, BMW and Pfizer, as well as major financial institutions, media groups and public sector organisations.

It is also the company’s main driver of profits.

AWS recommended customers migrate all accessible resources to other regions and restore inaccessible resources from remote backups as soon as possible, according to the status update posted to its website on Thursday.

The AWS status page showed that 37 services in the UAE have been listed as disrupted as of the week of April 30.

Several of these services have been disrupted since early March, according to the status page.

The firm said that the damage suffered to its operations in the UAE has led to a suspension of billing operations in the region.

Last month, Amazon’s cloud region in Bahrain had been “disrupted” due to drone activity in the area.

The US economy accelerated at the start of 2026, expanding at a modest 2 per cent pace from January through March after recovering from last fall’s 43-day federal government shutdown. But the outlook is clouded by the Iran war. The Commerce Department reported on Thursday that gross domestic product – the nation’s output of goods and services – rebounded from a lacklustre 0.5 per cent expansion the last three months of 2025. The federal government’s spending and investment grew at a 9.3 per cent...

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei declared on Thursday that the United States had suffered a shameful defeat, defiantly rejecting a warning from President Donald Trump that an economically punishing US naval blockade could be enforced for months to come.

“Today, two months after the largest military deployment and aggression by the world’s bullies in the region, and the United States’ disgraceful defeat in its plans, a new chapter is unfolding for the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz,” said Khamenei in the message read on state television.

The message by Khamenei, who has yet to appear in public since his appointment on March 9 as Iran’s new supreme leader, came on the annual national celebration of “Persian Gulf” day in Iran.

Khamenei became the supreme leader after the US and Israel launched a massive campaign of strikes on Iran on February 28, assassinating his father and predecessor, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In his Thursday message, he said US bases in the region “lack even the capacity to ensure their own security, let alone provide any hope of securing their allies.”

He hailed what he called Iran’s “new legal framework and management” of the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a key energy chokepoint, as a means to bring “comfort and progress” for countries in the region.

The strait has become a major flashpoint since the outbreak of the Middle East war, with Iran allowing only a trickle of ships to pass through the waterway.

Khamenei, in his message, predicted a bright future for the Gulf without the US and condemned what he described as “outsiders”, saying those who interfere from thousands of kilometres away “have no place there except at the bottom of its waters”.

“The record of repeated invasions by European and American foreigners —the insecurities, damages, and multiple threats they have imposed on the region’s countries — reflects only a fraction of the malicious schemes of global oppressors against the peoples of the Persian Gulf,” the message read.

He also lauded the people of Iran, who he said “consider all national capacities — identity, spiritual, human, scientific, industrial, and advanced technologies from nano and bio to nuclear and missile — as their national capital”.

Earlier on Thursday, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian had said a US naval blockade imposed in retaliation against Iran’s action in Hormuz was “doomed to fail”.

Pezeshkian added that such measures would “not only fail to enhance regional security, but are in fact a source of tension and a disruption to lasting stability in the Persian Gulf”.

Other figures have also struck a tone of defiance, with Navy Commander Shahram Irani signalling that Iran will deploy “in the very near future” naval weaponry which it has recently developed.

SEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will dispatch a special envoy to Kuwait,...

Cambridge International Education (CIE) on Thursday confirmed that its AS-level mathematics paper was “shared prematurely” against its regulations.

The development comes after the Inter-Board of Coordination Commission (IBCC) on Thursday announced it would seek a report from Cambridge as parents and students raised questions about the transparency of the exam system following reports of the leak.

In an official statement, CIE said, “We can confirm that Cambridge International AS-Level mathematics paper 12 (9709) taken in our Africa, Europe, Middle East, Pakistan and South Asia regions, was shared prematurely against our regulations.

“We investigate such incidents promptly and thoroughly and we are now working to understand the extent of the leak and determine next steps,” it added.

It affirmed its priority to ensure that the students were not disadvantaged by this incident, saying it would take all possible measures to protect the integrity of its exams.

“It is important that candidates continue to prepare for, and take, the upcoming exam,” it advised. It said that it would issue a further update on its progress on May 7.

The CIE, part of Cambridge University Press and Assessment, offers internationally recognised exams to over scores of schools in 160-plus countries. In Pakistan, O Levels (grades 9–10) cover a broad subject range, while A and AS Levels (grades 11–12) are more specialised and advanced, providing pathways to higher education in Pakistan and abroad.

In a statement yesterday, the CIE stated that it was “aware of news about a reported paper leak of a question paper” after social media was abuzz with complaints from disgruntled parents and students. Users pointed out the high examination fees and the fact that Cambridge question papers had leaked in the previous years as well.

In June last year, question papers of three AS and A-Level examinations were partially leaked across Pakistan. The CIE had then offered free November 2025 resits for candidates who set for the three exams in question.