Channel News Asia
중도 성향
기타
When a design constraint becomes this home’s defining feature
In western Singapore, a difficult site constraint becomes the starting point for a tropical family home centred on a garden, pool and courtyard.
"CONSTRAINT" · 총 86건
필터 보기현재 지수
50.3
0 = 부정 우세
50 = 중립
100 = 긍정 우세
최근 7일 기준 81,436건을 분석한 결과, 뉴스 심리지수는 50.2(균형)입니다. 긍정 3,988건(4.9%)·중립 75,523건(92.7%)·부정 1,925건(2.4%)이며, 중립 비중이 뚜렷하게 높습니다. 성향 지수는 종합 14.7(중도 균형)입니다.
In western Singapore, a difficult site constraint becomes the starting point for a tropical family home centred on a garden, pool and courtyard.
In South Africa, where local government is grappling with fiscal constraints, infrastructure backlogs, unemployment and service delivery problems, migration has become an additional layer of complexity that many municipalities were never designed to manage
Federal Minister for Planning, Development & Special Initiatives, Ahsan Iqbal, delivering his concluding address at the Pakistan Governance Forum 2026 in Islamabad on February 26, 2026. —PIDStrategic national projects becoming difficult to complete.Poverty alleviation falls under...
• Approves Rs100bn financing facility for PSO • Oil company facing over Rs900bn receivables from SOEs • Special honoraria expanded to more ministries, departments • Rs10.15bn cleared for Pakistan Navy’s Hangor Project • Rs4.38bn granted to Gilgit-Baltistan ahead of elections ISLAMABAD: Less than a week before the next budget, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet on Friday approved more than Rs40 billion in supplementary grants and a Rs100bn sovereign-guarantee-backed financing facility for the Pakistan State Oil (PSO), which is facing over Rs900bn in receivables from other state-owned enterprises, raising concerns about smooth oil supplies. And despite financial constraints forcing development cuts in the name of IMF restrictions, the ECC meeting, presided over by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, also allowed Rs10bn additional funds for parliamentarians’ development schemes and expanded the scope of special honoraria running up to six-month additional salaries to more ministries and departments involved in federal budget preparations. The benefit, already available to officials in around a dozen ministries and entities, including finance, revenue, planning, development, FBR, National Assembly, Senate and the Prime Minister’s Office, was expanded to the Law and Justice Division, Commerce Division and the Accountant General of Pakistan Revenue (AGPR). The fiscal impact was not disclosed. The meeting also changed the composition of a committee set up to settle about Rs60bn in petroleum levy dues charged to consumers but allegedly withheld by Cnergyico Refinery since 2019, citing concerns over conflict of interest, and ordered a tightened recovery plan. An official statement said the ECC approved a summary submitted by the Cabinet Division for Rs7.026bn through a technical supplementary grant for the Sustainable Development Goals Achievement Programme (SAP). “The allocation will facilitate continuity of development projects, prevent cost escalations, and timely achievement of programme objectives,” the statement said. Officials said the finance minister was under pressure from the leadership to provide funds for parliamentarians’ schemes in the outgoing fiscal year despite an about Rs175bn cut in the core development programme. The ECC also approved a summary of the Ministry of Defence for Rs10.15bn for the Hangor Project of the Pakistan Navy under the Rafale Aircraft and Force Development Package (RAFDP)-2030. The committee approved letters of comfort and government guarantees worth Rs100bn for PSO through a syndicated running finance facility to address its liquidity constraints and ensure uninterrupted oil supplies. The meeting was informed that state-owned enterprises, particularly gas companies, owed more than Rs904bn to PSO, making it increasingly difficult for the company to manage supply challenges under current geopolitical conditions. Instead of arranging recovery of those payments, the ECC approved borrowing of Rs50bn each from Habib Bank and Bank of Punjab to meet oil requirements. The borrowing will appear on PSO’s balance sheet. The meeting also took up the Deed of Settlement with Cnergyico PK Limited, which had collected petroleum levy from consumers but allegedly did not deposit it in the government treasury. The company is also seeking benefits under the Refining Policy for the upgradation of existing brownfield refineries. The ECC had earlier approved the constitution of a committee under the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) to resolve the late payment surcharge issue. Subsequently, the Law and Justice Division proposed amendments to strengthen safeguards for government revenues by requiring Cnergyico to deposit incremental incentives in a joint escrow account with Ogra and restricting withdrawals until the outstanding petroleum levy and late payment surcharge amounts were fully settled. The ECC was informed that the composition of the committee needed to be reviewed due to concerns over potential conflict of interest arising from the inclusion of the Cnergyico chief executive officer. A new committee was constituted under the convenership of the finance secretary, comprising representatives of the Law and Justice Division, Petroleum Division and SIFC, to resolve the late payment surcharge issue with Cnergyico and strengthen recovery of around Rs60bn, including Rs47.5bn in principal amount. The committee approved seven grants for the Ministry of Interior and Narcotics Control worth Rs2.826bn. These included Rs693m for security arrangements for the Islamabad peace talks, Rs241m as compensation for the suicide bombing at Imambargah Khadijah-tul-Kubra in Taralai, Islamabad, Rs528m for the Pakistan Land Ports Authority, Rs800m for procurement of fast patrol boats for the Pakistan Coast Guards, Rs1.884bn for the expansion of the Safe City Islamabad project, Rs150m for the National Counter Terrorism Authority and Rs414m for security charges relating to the Reko Diq project. The ECC approved Rs733m for Pakistan Television Corporation for payment of salaries for June 2026 and Rs183.5m for the Special Communication Organisation for installation of telecom sites and towers in Shigar district of Gilgit-Baltistan. It also approved Rs120m for the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs to meet employee-related expenditures arising from revised salaries and allowances of parliamentary secretaries during FY26. The meeting approved two grants for the Ministry of Housing and Works for placement of development funds into the current account of Pakistan Infrastructure Development Company Limited. These included Rs8.759bn for Karachi and Hyderabad Urban Infrastructure Development Packages and Rs2.84bn for parliamentary schemes in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The ECC also granted Rs1.3bn for the Modernisation and Upgradation of Pakistan Mint Phase-II-A and Rs4.377bn to the Gilgit-Baltistan government to support current expenditure requirements and priority initiatives launched ahead of elections. The committee also approved budget estimates of IPO-Pakistan for FY26, submitted by the Ministry of Commerce, comprising regular expenditure of Rs914.7m and projected revenue receipts of Rs918m. The ECC also approved a summary of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs regarding the operational continuity of Engro Vopak Terminal Limited. Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2026
Across all 11 U.S. host cities, 80% of hoteliers report bookings below forecast, with visa barriers and immigration enforcement cited as top constraints.
By Ediri Ejoh Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has approved special compensation for eligible ‘Band A’ customers affected by grid generation constraints. In a statement yesterday, the commission said the compensation framework is designed to mitigate the financial burden on consumers who suffer from prolonged outages despite their premium status. According to the statement, “NERC hereby […] The post NERC approves compensation for eligible ‘Band A’ electricity customers appeared first on Vanguard News.
By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has directed electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) to compensate eligible Band-A customers who suffered poor power supply due to grid generation constraints between February and March 2026. The directive, contained in NERC Directive No. NERC/2026/002 on the Special Compensation of Band-A Customers Arising from Grid Generation […] The post NERC orders DisCos to compensate Band-A customers over poor supply appeared first on Vanguard News.
Earlier this week, IndiGo announced that it will temporarily pause flights to Manchester citing continued international airspace constraints.
The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has approved a special compensation scheme for eligible Band A electricity customers affected by grid generation constraints experienced between February and March 2026. The post NERC approves compensation for Band A electricity customers over supply shortfall appeared first on Vanguard News.
MANILA, Philippines — The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group National Capital Region (CIDG NCR) explained that no orange detainee shirt had fit Sen. Jinggoy Estrada when he was undergoing the booking procedure. “There were time constraints during that time because we had to deliver him to the Sandiganbayan,” CIDG NCR chief Col. John Guiagui told
Nigeria’s electricity regulator has approved a special compensation framework for eligible Band A customers affected by prolonged generation shortfalls between February and March 2026, citing gas supply constraints and vandalism of critical infrastructure as major causes. The post NERC approves special compensation for Band A customers affected by power shortfalls appeared first on Premium Times Nigeria.
The measure, first introduced in August 2025, supports copper producers whose processing operations are disrupted by technical challenges, repair work at major smelting facilities
THEY all look the same and for good reason. Every budget over the past 10 years (and more) is pretty much the same with minor differences usually in the gimmickry being advanced in the name of a ‘revenue plan’. And it will be no different this time round when the budget for FY27 is announced. There is a simple reason for this. A little more than a decade and a half ago Pakistan finally abandoned its last attempt to try and get serious tax reform through. Since then, successive governments have been rolling out various gimmicks, from amnesty schemes to ‘point of sale machines’ to do something that cannot be done with gimmicks. They are trying to document the growing services sector of the economy with these gimmicks, which is like trying to measure the ocean with a teacup. Consider a little perspective first. Since the 1980s, the single fastest-growing sector of the economy has been services. It was slightly less than half of Pakistan’s GDP back in those days. Today, it is touching 60 per cent while the shares of industry and agriculture have shrunk. But today, services contributes less than 40pc of total revenues while the share of manufacturing can be as high as 55pc. This is an important crux of the problem. The fastest-growing sector in Pakistan’s economy has made a diminutive contribution to its revenue effort. And there are a number of reasons why. First, successive governments have failed to undertake the kind of tax reforms necessary to keep abreast of the changes sweeping the economy where the services sector is a motor force for growth. For now, the bulk of the revenues contributed by this sector comes from banking and telecom — the low-hanging fruit. Quite possibly, this is the one budget of the past decade or more which will be defined almost entirely by its revenue effort. Documenting the transactions taking place in this sector is the first step to reaching them. And for decades there was one big idea on how to do that. It was called ‘value-added tax’, or VAT, and countries around the world implemented it with varying measures of success to help document their economies during periods of change, and help distribute the burden of the tax effort more widely. In some shape or form, the VAT was always on the agenda as a crucial structural reform measure of every IMF programme that Pakistan signed between 1988 and 2008, and there were many. The tax itself was passed into law in 1992, updated in 1996, but never really applied in value-added mode across the board. In 2008, it was supposed to be updated and modernised but the government of the time failed to ensure passage of the legislation so spectacularly that the IMF simply dropped it from all future reform agendas. Since then, it has been abandoned. In abandoning it, however, a new question arose. If you are not going to use the VAT to document your economy, how exactly are you going to do it? The question was an important one because Pakistan’s economy was growing in directions that its tax machinery struggled to capture. And successive governments gave their own answers to this question. This was the decade of gimmicks. We had amnesty schemes, proliferating withholding taxes, new taxes on banking transactions of non-filers, attempts to document the economy by triangulating multiple databases, reliance on data from point of sale machines and even one brief and doomed attempt to manually document the retail sector by serving tens of thousands of notices to them. Of course, all of these failed because, as already stated, they amounted to attempts to measure the amount of water in the ocean using a teacup. Pakistan’s tax-to-GDP ratio stagnated in the single digits and intensified political struggles around the shrinking resource envelope of the state. We saw more gimmicks on the revenue side, like deemed incomes. We saw a ‘hard state’ approach to withdraw all exemptions or rebates offered to schoolteachers and university professors. They leaned harder on fuel taxes than any government in any period in the past. And they printed more money than any other government in any comparable decade in the past. All to help make ends meet at the centre. Taken together, all these gimmicks made for an unseemly display of desperation. The growing resort to gimmickry was the state thrashing around within the shrinking confines of its resource envelope when it could not generate resources in quantities sufficient to keep pace with its expenditure growth. And they squeezed out a decade for themselves like this. This was the overriding context within which all budgets in these years were made. And now the context is wrapping itself around them like the cloak of Nessus that once worn began to tighten around the wearer until its grip became inescapable and fatal. This is what sets the stage for the forthcoming budget. Watch what rabbit they’ll pull out of their hat this time round to call a ‘revenue plan’ for the next fiscal year. They have to give relief to salaried people, and industry is near breaking point. They can’t lean more heavily on fuel or electricity taxes or deem more taxes into being out of foreign assets of the rich. Keep an eye on the revenue plan they announce as well as the target for incremental revenues they have to pursue. They are chasing incremental revenues of up to 0.6pc of GDP, half of which will come from the federal government through slashing exemptions and their FBR transformation plan, including production monitoring and audits. This was their Achilles heel this year. Now their constraints are tighter still for next year, and options even more limited. Quite possibly, this is the one budget of the past decade or more which will be defined almost entirely by its revenue effort. If there is no attempt to break out of the constraints, then we’ll know we are all headed for the embrace of Nessus. The writer is a business and economy journalist. khurram.husain@gmail.com X: @khurramhusain Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2026
Says not preserving the data citing space constraints defeats the purpose of installing CCTV in police stations
Amsalem also claimed the United States was limiting Israel’s capabilities to attack Hezbollah, and that Israel was operating “wisely” within those constraints.
Shares of Titagarh Rail Systems gained nearly 3% to hit the day's high of Rs 857 on the BSE on Wednesday after Wall Street major Jefferies raised the target price to Rs 990 from Rs 810, implying an upside of 19% from current market levels.With a Buy rating, the international brokerage raised the target by 23%. Jefferies said Titagarh Rail Systems delivered a stronger-than-expected quarter, and improving execution is likely to drive a re-rating of the stock going forward. The brokerage believes Titagarh is well-positioned to benefit from rising demand for passenger and metro coaches, supported by government-led infrastructure initiatives. It estimates a 44% EPS CAGR over FY26-30 and expects the company's strong order book in the passenger segment to provide healthy earnings visibility.Titagarh delivered 64 coaches in FY26, ahead of Jefferies' estimate of 60 coaches. While this fell short of the management's earlier guidance of 100-120 coaches, the shortfall was largely anticipated due to execution delays in the first half of FY26.Management has reiterated confidence in delivering 200-220 coaches in FY27, compared with Jefferies' estimate of 193 coaches, citing the resolution of initial execution challenges. On the flagship Vande Bharat project, the company expects to deliver two trains in FY27, in line with Jefferies' projections, with the prototype scheduled for supply in the December 2026 quarter.Margins in the March quarter came in significantly ahead of expectations at 19%, compared with Jefferies' estimate of 12%, supported by a sharp increase in execution of the Bengaluru Metro project, which is being executed as a job contract. Management has guided for margins of around 12% in the near term, with a gradual improvement towards 15% as the company advances up the technology value chain.Rail wagon sales declined 29% year-on-year due to supply-side constraints. While Jefferies expects wagon sales to fall a further 5% in FY27, it forecasts a largely stable trajectory over FY27-30, supported by its estimate that Indian Railways' cargo volumes could reach around 3 billion tonnes by FY35, compared with the FY30 target.The company currently has an order book of 6,500 wagons, providing visibility for about 97% of Jefferies' FY27 wagon sales estimates, although visibility beyond FY27 remains limited. Separately, Titagarh has secured 28% capital assistance for its brownfield shipbuilding expansion plans and is evaluating technology partnerships and potential joint ventures with shipyards.The brokerage noted that a recent report by Live Mint indicated Indian Railways is considering an order for 1 lakh wagons, which could significantly improve earnings visibility for wagon manufacturers. The valuation assigns 30x March 2028 estimated EPS to the core business, up from 25x previously, reflecting positive developments around potential wagon orders and the upcoming wheel joint venture, which it values at 2.5x its investment value. Key risks to the outlook include delays in wagon orders or wheel supplies from Indian Railways, as well as weaker-than-expected execution.Titagarh Rail Q4 snapshotTitagarh Rail reported a net profit for the quarter at Rs 53.96 crore, compared to a net loss of Rs 122.4 crore that the company reported last year.Titagarh Rail's revenue in the March quarter declined by 12.9% to Rs 875.4 crore from Rs 1,005.6 crore in the previous year.The company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) declined 4.4% to Rs 97.3 crore in the March quarter from Rs 96.56 crore last year, while margins stood at 11% from 10% last year. (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)
Shares of InterGlobe Aviation, the operator of IndiGo, fell more than 1% to their day's low of Rs 4,425 on the BSE on Wednesday after it suspended flights to and from Manchester from August 31, as prolonged airspace restrictions and rising operational expenses continue to weigh on long-haul services.The airline said the temporary suspension will lead to the return of one of the six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft leased from Norse Atlantic Airways, which were brought in to support its long-haul international expansion plans.In a statement issued on Tuesday, IndiGo said ongoing international airspace constraints have significantly increased flight durations, while a difficult cost environment has made operations on the route increasingly challenging. As a result, services between India and Manchester will be paused from August 31, 2026.The carrier had inducted six Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners on damp lease from Norse Atlantic Airways in early 2025 as part of its strategy to accelerate entry into European markets before the arrival of its own Airbus A350 aircraft. The Manchester service was among the first long-haul routes launched under this initiative.According to the airline, a combination of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, elevated aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, severe airspace restrictions and currency volatility pushed operating costs well above original expectations.Abhijit Dasgupta, Senior Vice President for Network Planning and Revenue Management at IndiGo, said the route had received a strong response from passengers despite the operational difficulties."We inducted these wide-body aircraft on a short-term basis to fast-track our connectivity to high-potential long-haul destinations such as Manchester and witnessed very encouraging demand response," Dasgupta said."Unfortunately, longer flying times due to airspace constraints coupled with dramatically escalating costs compelled us to take the decision to temporarily discontinue our India-Manchester services," he added.The airline stressed that the suspension is only temporary and reaffirmed its commitment to growing its long-haul international network. Dasgupta said the positive customer response had strengthened IndiGo's confidence in the long-term viability of the Manchester route and its wider international expansion plans.IndiGo also said affected passengers will be notified in advance and assisted with alternative travel options or refunds, wherever applicable. The airline clarified that all of its other long-haul international services will continue to operate as scheduled.IndiGo Q4 snapshotIndia’s leading airline by market share reported a net loss of Rs 2,536 crore for the fourth quarter of FY26, compared with a net profit of Rs 3,067 crore in the corresponding period last year. Revenue from operations, however, edged up 1% year-on-year to Rs 22,438 crore.The airline said its operational performance during the quarter was affected by disruptions linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASKs), increased 3.4% year-on-year to 43.6 billion. IndiGo shares have fallen 20% in the last six months and about 17% in the last 1 year. Sensex, Nifty today: Catch all the LIVE stock market action here (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)
• Economists see little room for growth under IMF programme • Economy stuck in low-growth equilibrium as consumers’ purchasing power erodes • Exports, energy costs, policy inconsistency remain major hurdles WITH the government preparing to roll out its third budget, the economy appears trapped between two competing imperatives: preserving fragile macroeconomic stability to avoid another balance-of-payments crisis and reviving growth to create jobs and alleviate poverty. While the government continues to flaunt stabilisation as an achievement in itself, a sense of “stabilisation fatigue” appears to have settled in among businesses and households. The fatigue stems from a simple reality: Pakistan has spent much of the last three years managing crises rather than building sustainable growth drivers. No wonder the economy remains stuck in repeated cycles of adjustment and a low-growth equilibrium — stable enough to avoid collapse, but too weak to generate prosperity. The IMF-mandated adjustment policies — tight monetary policy, fiscal contraction, demand compression, import controls, and energy price hikes — have helped restore external stability, narrow the twin deficits, moderate inflation, and bring back some semblance of macroeconomic order. But the social and economic costs of prolonged stabilisation are now more visible than its benefits. Industries continue to operate below capacity, businesses remain hesitant to invest and consumers continue to struggle with eroded purchasing power. For most Pakistanis, the lived economy remains far harsher than the official narrative of recovery suggests. Several deep-rooted weaknesses continue to obstruct any transition towards sustainable growth. Exports remain weak, energy costs and inefficiencies continue to undermine industrial competitiveness, policy inconsistency deters investment and high interest rates have compressed private-sector activity. A large portion of government revenues is absorbed by debt servicing, defence spending and subsidies, leaving limited fiscal space for development, relief and industrial support. The upcoming budget is unlikely to break the economy away from this path of austerity. Growth prospects offer little comfort. Some analysts believe GDP growth in FY27 could remain closer to 3-3.5pc if crude oil prices stay elevated amid prolonged Middle East tensions, well below the government’s target of 4.1pc. Average growth over the last three years has remained below 2pc. The budget will almost certainly be framed within the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility, analysts at Topline and JS Global, two Karachi-based brokerage firms, wrote in their pre-budget analyses. They said the government would target a fourth consecutive primary surplus, push for stronger revenue mobilisation and pursue fiscal restraint. Little room for growth Development economist Naved Hamid sees little room for growth under the IMF programme. “We don’t really have any room. This budget will be an austerity budget like before,” he said. Economist Waqar Wadho is also not hopeful about the economy moving out of its low-growth mode. “The biggest issue remains structural problems. They are exactly where they were before. Even targeting 3-5pc growth would be a marginal change, not a major shift,” he said. He said growth would remain elusive because it was not the IMF’s mandate. “The IMF’s mandate is stabilising external balance. Under an IMF programme, growth-oriented policy is simply not possible,” he said. The constraints facing growth are serious. The revenue target for next year, for example, has been upgraded by the IMF to quantitative performance criteria, a binding commitment rather than a soft benchmark. This further tightens the screws around the government after repeated failures to meet targets. Pakistan Banks Association Chairman Zafar Masud said the problem lay deeper than collection shortfalls. “The centre of gravity of our economic problems is unsustainable government finance,” he said. “The issue is not the scale of government spending per se. The issue is the weakness of revenue generation, cross-subsidy and its leakages and fiscal efficiency. The FY27 budget is an opportunity to break Pakistan’s recurring low-growth, high-debt equilibrium.” This raises the uncomfortable question: stabilisation for what? Mr Masud believes growth is possible even under the IMF programme. “The IMF programme buys stability, not growth. Stability is necessary, but growth is what ultimately reduces poverty and improves living standards. It’s the micro-economic interventions which can bring the necessary growth. With limited fiscal space, leveraging private-sector funding becomes a game-changer for achieving the economic multiplier,” he said. Mr Hamid agreed that some room existed for improvement, but he sounded less optimistic. “Yes, there is some room to improve even under the IMF programme. But whether you look at private-sector investment, early indicators or any visible government strategy, I do not see anything big or substantial happening,” he said. The recently released Shadow Economic Survey 2026-27, published by an Islamabad-based think tank financed by a business lobby, acknowledged that stabilisation was necessary. However, it warned that stabilisation was defensive economics; it may prevent collapse, but it does not automatically generate growth, jobs, investment or prosperity. Many business leaders say it is unfortunate that economic success is now measured through reserve accumulation, current account balances and IMF review completions. Managing immediate crises appears to have taken precedence over pursuing a growth agenda. This may reassure lenders and financial markets, but it cannot satisfy a population facing declining real incomes and disappearing jobs. Mr Masud described the current economic predicament as a failure of policy design. “Pakistan’s recurring balance-of-payments crises are downstream symptoms of unresolved structural fiscal distortions — distortions that have been patched in the past rather than fixed,” he said. Beyond stabilisation Pakistan’s growth predicament stems from an economic model dependent on imports and external financing. Historically, whenever growth accelerates beyond a modest threshold, imports surge because the domestic industry relies heavily on imported machinery and inputs, while exports fail to keep pace. The current account deficit widens, foreign exchange reserves come under pressure and the country eventually returns to the IMF for another bailout. The deeper structural weaknesses remain unresolved. Aware of public pressure, the government is reportedly considering limited relief measures for salaried classes and compliant businesses despite fiscal constraints. These concessions, however modest, could create an additional revenue gap. Mr Wadho is sceptical that any meaningful relief will materialise. “They are unable to broaden the tax base, so there will be pressure. For public optics, they may trim a few headline items here and there. But then they will squeeze people indirectly, say, in the form of an even higher petroleum levy, and everyone will feel that,” he said. Mr Masud argued that Pakistan should widen the tax base rather than continue raising tax rates. “Tax-base expansion without punitive rates should be one of the defining objectives of the coming budget. Sustainable deficit reduction requires stronger revenue generation and lower leakages, not higher tax rates,” he said. Business leaders argue that the IMF programme can provide temporary stability and policy discipline, but it cannot substitute for a long-term national growth strategy based on reforms. “Confidence cannot be restored through macroeconomic management alone,” a textile exporter said, adding that public belief had weakened that economic sacrifices today would eventually lead to tangible improvements in living standards. Economists say Pakistan does not need another stabilisation budget dressed in the language of reform. It needs a redesign of its growth model: from consumption-driven, import-financed expansion to export-oriented, productivity-led growth. Such a transformation requires reforms that successive governments have continued to delay because they are politically costly and slow to yield visible rewards. The new budget will be judged not by whether it satisfies the IMF’s performance criteria, but by whether it offers any credible signal that Pakistan is finally charting a course beyond mere survival. As Wadho put it: “The choice before the budget makers is clear: reform, delay or another lost cycle.” Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2026
• Nepra holds public hearing after CPPA asks for additional fuel cost adjustment due to Iran war disruptions • Regulator seeks report from K-Electric over ‘excessive loadshedding’ in Karachi ISLAMABAD: The price of electricity is likely to be increased by Rs1.74 per unit in next month’s bills due to the higher fuel cost adjustment, in light of an official demand for over Rs16 billion in additional recoveries from power consumers. The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) held a public hearing on the Central Power Purchasing Agency’s (CPPA) request for an additional fuel cost recovery of Rs1.73 per unit from consumers for the June billing month. CPPA Chief Executive Officer Rehan Akhtar told the hearing that the reference fuel cost for April had been set at Rs8.25 per unit, but the actual cost turned out to be Rs9.975 per unit, mainly because of the US-Iran war and the resultant disruption in LNG supplies, thus necessitating an additional charge of Rs1.73 per unit on consumers in the billing month of June. Technical constraints in shifting cheaper power sources in Sindh to load centres in the upcountry regions facing shortages also contributed to the higher fuel cost adjustment (FCA). The net increase would be Rs1.74 per unit, as an existing minor negative fuel adjustment had also come to an end. The CPPA official said the government decided to undertake load management and limit the use of furnace oil and diesel for power generation, which helped contain the additional FCA at Rs1.73 per unit. He said special arrangements were made for LNG imports and the government decided to charge Rs2,000 per unit for its price instead of Rs3,500 per unit under normal circumstances to limit the tariff hike. In response to a question, he confirmed that lower availability of the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant Unit-2 (K-2) had also contributed to the higher FCA, while its past claims worth Rs3.4bn were another factor behind the increase. Another official explained that the K-2 plant was only partially available because of forced outages due to the problems in the nuclear reactor. The regulator was informed that power supply from the national grid to Karachi continued to benefit both K-Electric consumers and those connected to the national grid. “If KE had not been provided electricity from the national grid, an overall increase of Rs1.46 per unit in FCA and an increase of Rs2.80 per unit in capacity purchase price (CPP) would have resulted for consumers, with a total impact of Rs4.26 per unit for the month of April 2026,” Rehan reported. He said overall power consumption in April this year was 8.5pc lower than last year, as demand declined across all consumer categories except the industrial sector, where the impact of gas disconnections for captive power plants and the incremental tariff package contributed to a 13.5pc growth. Industrial consumers from Karachi, including Rehan Javed, Tanveer Barry and Arif Bilwani, complained that the incremental tariff package had benefited only a few consumers because of its “faulty design”. They called for the package to be reviewed. It was reported that consumption in the domestic sector dropped by almost 15pc, followed by declines of 9.5pc in the commercial sector, 7.2pc in general services, 53pc in agriculture and about 13pc among bulk consumers. Excessive loadshedding in Karachi During the hearing on Tuesday, Nepra also sought a detailed report from K-Electric over “excessive loadshedding” in Karachi amid scorching temperatures. Nepra pointed out that an increasing number of complaints were being received about excessive loadshedding in Karachi. A senior Nepra official reported that these complaints were coming from both high-loss and low-loss areas, which was a matter of concern as loadshedding schedules were not being followed. Moreover, power cuts caused by technical faults were also not being accounted for by the power utility under load management schedules, which was against regulatory performance standards. The K-Electric management, available live online, was asked to provide a detailed report on an urgent basis so the matter could be examined. KE promised to submit its report at the earliest but did not immediately respond to the allegations. In a statement issued after the hearing, a KE spokesperson said that its loadshedding practices were aligned with the principles of the National Electricity Policy 2021, and blamed development work in the city by civic authorities for any localised faults that were reported. Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2026
The founders built a structural limit on federal taxing power, a restriction the Progressive Era removed. The government that followed was not a coincidence. The 16th Amendment, ratified Feb. 3, 1913, gave Congress the power to tax income “from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several states.” Those 23 words eliminated the constitutional constraint […]