Rail & road access to Central Asia, Europe & Russia to be game changer: Aleem
He emphasised that improving communication infrastructure is a key priority to achieve economic growth and meaningful discussions are under way with various countries in this regard.
He expressed these views during a meeting with Ambassador of Kazakhstan Yerzhan Kistafin who called on him in Islamabad.
The meeting included an in-depth discussion on matters of mutual interest, bilateral cooperation and the outcomes of the recent ECO (Economic Cooperation Organization) summit.
Abdul Aleem Khan highlighted that strengthened partnerships between major South Asian countries will yield positive results.
He reiterated Pakistan's commitment to playing a proactive role on all international platforms and expressed optimism about a brighter economic and financial outlook for the country in the coming days.
Kazakh Ambassador Yerzhan Kistafin conveyed his goodwill gesture and congratulated Federal Minister Abdul Aleem Khan and the entire Pakistani nation on their success in the recent war with India.
He acknowledged Pakistan's distinguished status in the Islamic World and expressed his nation's continued prayers and support.
He also extended Eid-ul-Adha greetings and reaffirmed Kazakhstan's commitment to offering all possible support to Pakistan.
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
an hour ago
- Business Recorder
Pakistan calls for fighting terrorism ‘without double standards'
A senior Pakistani diplomat has called for addressing terrorism without 'double standards and political agenda' as he drew attention to the brutal oppression in Indian occupied Kashmir and Palestine, stressing: 'Occupation cannot be dressed up as counter-terrorism.' 'We must clearly distinguish between terrorism and the legitimate struggle of peoples against foreign occupation and for exercising their right to self-determination,' Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad told the UN Security Council on Wednesday. Speaking in a debate on 'Threats to international peace & security caused by terrorist acts', he also highlighted that Pakistan, which has been in the forefront of the fight against terrorism, was standing firm against ISIL/Daesh and its affiliates — the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) and its Majeed Brigade. These terrorist groups, the Pakistani envoy added, were actively collaborating in Afghanistan and the region, sharing resources, information and physical space to carry out attacks against Pakistan. Indeed, at the outset of the debate, Under-Secretary-General for Counter-Terrorism and Head of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism Vladimir Voronkov said, that ISIL-Da'esh in Afghanistan 'represents one of the most serious threats to Central Asia and beyond'. The group remains a 'volatile and complex' threat, with its affiliates showing resilience despite the deaths of key leaders, he said. In his remarks, the Pakistani envoy also underscored the need to address 'state terrorism.' 'The situations in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and the Occupied Palestinian Territories are the starkest examples where collective punishments against civilian populations, widespread grave violations of human rights, forced demographic changes and fabricated counter-terrorism narratives and unlawful actions are being deployed by the occupation forces to prolong and sustain the illegal occupations and undermine and deny the legitimate right to self-determination of the populations of these territories,' he added. Noting that the UN Secretary-General report describes the situation in Afghanistan as 'precarious', Ambassador Asim said, 'Indeed terrorism within and from Afghanistan is the single most potent threat to that country, to the region, and the world.' Pakistan named vice chair of UN Counter-Terrorism Committee For Pakistan, he said, the threat was grave and immediate from the TTP, which has nearly 6,000 fighters who operate from Afghan soil bordering the country. 'There is credible evidence of collaboration between the TTP and BLA and the Majeed Brigade, including sharing of terrorist training camps, that has targeted our strategic infrastructure, economic projects in Pakistan, and most tragically our people,' he pointed out. 'And our principal adversary in the region is active in sponsoring terrorism in Pakistan. It bankrolls and supports terrorist proxies, and carries out extra territorial assassinations that have in fact gone global,' Ambassador Asim Iftikhar said, without actually naming India. Asim also highlighted that India's blatant aggression against Pakistan on the night of May 6-7 this year, in violation of our sovereignty and international law, under the false pretext of counter-terrorism, deliberately and indiscriminately targeted civilian population and infrastructure, resulting in the martyrdom of 54 innocent Pakistani nationals, including 15 children, some of them infants, and 13 women. 'When state terrorism masquerades as counter-terrorism, international peace is often the first casualty,' the Pakistani envoy commented. 'This Council should not look away.' Terrorism today is not just on the battlefield; it is online, it is algorithm-driven, it is financed through digital shadows, he said, emphasizing, 'we must respond, with clarity and conviction and through a holistic approach.' Among the steps he listed was to prioritise addressing the root causes of terrorism; deal with state terrorism; bring in changes to the sanctions regimes to incorporate new and emerging threats and end the dangerous stigmatization of Islam and Muslims as terrorism is a global phenomenon and cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group, and regulate new tools of terror, and strengthen cooperation – from INTERPOL to national law enforcement – to choke off the digital arteries of terrorist networks. He also wondered that there was no non-Muslim in the UNSC's terrorism list, saying: 'It is not understandable, and is indeed unacceptable, that every name on the Security Council's terrorism lists is Muslim, while terrorists and violent extremists elsewhere escape scrutiny. There is no non-Muslim in the lists. This must change.' 'We can defeat terrorism by fighting it together and fighting it justly,' Ambassador Asim maintained.
Business Recorder
3 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Pakistan commerce chief arrives in Dhaka to boost bilateral trade
Federal Minister for Commerce, Jam Kamal Khan, arrived in Bangladesh on Wednesday to begin a four-day official visit from August 21 to 24, 2025. The visit is aimed at strengthening bilateral trade ties and enhancing economic cooperation between Pakistan and Bangladesh, read an official statement on Thursday. Upon his arrival in Dhaka, Kamal was received by Bashir Uddin, Adviser for Commerce of Bangladesh, and Imran Haider, High Commissioner of Pakistan. During his stay, the commerce minister will hold high-level meetings with his Bangladeshi counterpart, senior government officials, and leading business representatives to explore new avenues of collaboration in trade and investment. Earlier this month, Jam Kamal and Bangladesh's High Commissioner to Pakistan, Iqbal Hussain Khan, explored deeper bilateral cooperation in trade, energy, logistics, and industrial linkages. The discussions focused on Bangladesh's growing industrial needs, particularly for Pakistani coal and limestone to support its power generation and soda ash production. Key points of discussion included boosting agricultural trade, particularly Pakistan's imports of pineapples from Bangladesh and potential exports of mangos, pending final technical approvals. Moreover, the discussions also covered opportunities in textiles, mineral exports like high-quality limestone from Sindh, and Halal-certified meat products, with both sides committing to addressing logistical challenges and streamlining business visa processes to facilitate smoother trade exchanges.
Express Tribune
7 hours ago
- Express Tribune
PSX reaches new peak above 150,500
Bulls continued to maintain their firm grip over the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday as the KSE-100 index roared past 150.5k points, a historic high that came on the back of Moody's ratings upgrade for banks and encouraging corporate-sector earnings. Robust interest from local institutions in stock buying and a modest current account deficit for July also lent support to the stock market, which rose 820 points, or 0.55%, and closed at 150,591. "Stocks closed at an all-time high after Moody's Ratings upgraded the local and foreign-currency long-term deposit ratings of five leading Pakistani banks to Caa1 from Caa2, following its recent decision to raise the country's sovereign rating," commented Ahsan Mehanti of Arif Habib Corp. "Upbeat data showing $284 million in current account deficit amid strong remittances, rising exports and rupee stability powered the market's record close," he said. Topline Securities, in its report, said bulls showed no signs of fatigue at the local bourse, storming ahead to notch the intra-day record high with gains of 1,490 points before settling at 150,591, up 820 points (+0.55%). The upward momentum was underpinned by better-than-expected corporate earnings and a strong liquidity push from local institutions, lifting the benchmark index to uncharted heights, it said, adding that investor confidence remained buoyant as market heavyweights attracted robust flows, reinforcing the bullish undertone. The rally was largely fuelled by index heavyweights including Systems Limited, Bank AL Habib, NBP, MCB Bank and Bank Alfalah, which contributed 503 points to the upward trajectory, Topline mentioned. KTrade Securities wrote in its market wrap that the index delivered another historic performance, surging 820 points to close at a record high of 150,591, after briefly touching intra-day peak of 151,262. The rally was primarily fuelled by strong performance in the banking and tech sectors. Major contribution to the index came from banks, technology and pharma stocks, it said. KTrade anticipated the bullish sentiment to remain in place with some profit-taking and consolidation at record levels. Arif Habib Limited (AHL) stated that key contributors to the index were Searle (+10%), NBP (+3.53%) and Systems Limited (+3.52%) while Engro Fertilisers (-1.29%), Engro Holdings (-1.10%) and Fauji Fertiliser (-1.05%) were the biggest drags. On the macro front, the current account for July 2025 posted a deficit of $254 million, which marked an improvement from the deficit of $348 million in July 2024, though it switched from a surplus of $335 million in June 2025, it said. In addition to that, Moody's Ratings upgraded the local and foreign-currency long-term deposit ratings of five major Pakistani banks from Caa2 to Caa1 — a development that may improve investor confidence in the financial sector. In the services sector, IT and ITeS exports, including computer services and call centre services, grew 24% year-on-year in July, reaching $354 million, AHL added. Overall trading volumes decreased to 667.8 million shares compared with Tuesday's tally of 809.1 million. Traded value stood at Rs40.7 billion. Shares of 487 companies were traded. Of these, 240 advanced, 216 dropped and 31 remained unchanged. The Bank of Punjab was the volume leader with trading in 52.3 million shares, gaining Rs0.16 to close at Rs14.92. It was followed by WorldCall Telecom with 36.3 million shares, rising Rs0.03 to close at Rs1.48 and Fauji Foods with 33.6 million shares, climbing Rs0.52 to close at Rs16.42. Foreign investors sold shares worth Rs1.92 billion, the National Clearing Company reported.
