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UAE halts stock markets for two days after Iran strikes

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has ordered its stock markets closed on Monday and Tuesday as the country reels from Iran’s retaliatory missile and drone strikes , in a sign of the growing economic disruption sweeping the Gulf. Iran carried out the strikes in Gulf countries that have US bases and assets after joint attacks on the Islamic republic by Israel and America. The UAE Capital Markets Authority said the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and Dubai Financial Market would remain shut on March 2 and March 3, citing its supervisory and regulatory role over the country’s capital markets. “The Authority will continue to monitor developments in the region and assess the situation on an ongoing basis, taking any further measures as necessary,” it said in a statement. The UAE’s two exchanges are home to some of the region’s most valuable listed companies. The closure keeps billions of dollars in listed assets in suspension as investors await clarity on the scale of damage from Saturda...
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As US-Iran tensions rise, oil emerges as Pakistan’s biggest economic risk

If the war between Iran and the United States escalates, the single biggest economic threat to Pakistan will come from oil. Brent crude settled around $72.5 a barrel on Friday, already up nearly 19 per cent year-to-date, according to CNBC . Rumours are swirling of oil touching $100. For Pakistan, even modest increases carry heavy consequences. For every $10 rise in oil prices, the current account deficit increases by roughly $1.5–$2 billion, explains former chief executive officer of the Pakistan Business Council, Ehsan Malik. “If prices were to climb to $100, the deficit could expand by $5–$7bn on an annualised basis, potentially undoing recent gains that allowed FY25 to post a $2bn current account surplus.” Markets are extremely erratic right now, says energy analyst Syed Rashid Husain. Iran produces roughly 3–3.5 million barrels of oil per day, exporting about 1–1.5m barrels. While this is far lower than the output of the United States (about 13.5m barrels per day) or Saudi Ar...
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Who is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei?

US President Donald Trump says Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “is dead”. His claim came hours after Israel and the US launched an attack on Iran and followed reports quoting Israeli officials as saying that Khamenei had been assassinated. But, subsequent Iranian media reports said that Khamenei was “steadfast and firm in commanding the field”. Khamenei, 86, became Iran’s highest authority in 1989, following the death of the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. As supreme leader, he has held ultimate control over Iran’s political, military and religious institutions, shaping domestic policy and guiding foreign relations. An article published in Al Jazeera says “critical to Khamenei’s power is the loyalty of two of Iran’s premier security institutions – the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij paramilitary forces, which have hundreds of ⁠thousands of volunteers”. Khamenei upheld the conservative vision of his predecessor, Khomein...
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Govt hikes petrol price by Rs8, high-speed diesel by Rs5

The government on Saturday raised the price of petrol by Rs8 per litre and that of high-speed diesel (HSD) by Rs5.16 per litre for the next fortnight, according to a press release issued by the Petroleum Division. Following the increase, the price of petrol has jumped from Rs258.17 to Rs266.17 while the HSD price now stands at 280.86. According to the press release, the government has revised the petroleum products’ prices based on the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority’s recommendations. The new prices are effective from March 1, the press release said. Petrol is mostly used in private transport, small vehicles, rickshaws and two-wheelers and has a direct bearing on the budget of the middle and lower-middle class. While the heavy transport sector runs on HSD, its price is considered inflationary as it is mostly used in heavy transport vehicles, trains and agricultural engines like trucks, buses, tractors, tube-wells and threshers, and particularly adds to the prices of vegetables a...
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PM chairs meeting on overall security situation in country, directs authorities to ensure strict measures

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday directed all relevant institutions at the federal and provincial levels to immediately ensure comprehensive and effective security measures in view of the prevailing situation. The premier chaired a high-level review meeting in Lahore on the overall security situation in the country, according to the report. The development comes in the wake of Pakistan launching Operation Ghazab lil-Haq after the Afghan Taliban opened unprovoked fire on multiple locations across the border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Thursday. PM Shehbaz emphasised that all institutions must discharge their responsibilities with mutual coordination and complete harmony. The participants of the meeting informed the prime minister that all security agencies were on alert in light of the current situation and that all necessary measures were being taken to safeguard national security. In view of the evolving situation in Iran, which was struck by US and Israel earlier in the d...
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Israeli strikes kill seven more Palestinians across Gaza

• Israel’s Supreme Court freezes ban on foreign aid organisations in enclave • US public sympathy shifts to Palestinians over Israel, new Gallup poll reveals CAIRO: Relentless Israeli attacks killed at least seven Palestinians in Gaza on Friday, medics said, adding to a death toll of at least 600 people killed by Israeli fire since a US-brokered ceasefire agreement came into effect last October. Gaza’s health officials reported that in southern Gaza, five people were killed and several others were injured, some critically, in Israeli drone strikes. The strikes targeted two police checkpoints in Khan Yunis and in the Abu Hujair area northwest of the Bureij refugee camp later in the day, medics said. Separately, an Israeli airstrike against a group of Palestinians in Gaza City’s Tuffah neighbourhood in northern Gaza killed two people and wounded several others. Ban on NGOs frozen Meanwhile, Israel’s Supreme Court decided in a ruling published on Friday to freeze a government ban o...
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With presidential ordinance set to lapse, Senate passes bill for regulating virtual assets

ISLAMABAD: The upper House of Parliament on Friday passed a bill for regulating virtual assets as well as the ‘establishment’ of the Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) — a body already set up under an ordinance approved by the president in July last year. The development comes as the ordinance was set to lapse in early March. The rules were suspended in the Senate to take up the bill, which was moved by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, for immediate consideration. The preamble of the bill, a copy of which is available with Dawn , stated that it was expedient to establish a dedicated virtual assets regulatory authority to licence, regulate and supervise virtual assets and virtual asset service providers to “ensure investor protection, transparency and market integrity in Pakistan”. It further stated that it was necessary to provide a comprehensive legal framework to empower the said authority to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, proliferation finan...
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