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Gold hits Rs410,278/tola amid global rally | The Express Tribune
KARACHI:
Gold prices in Pakistan surged to fresh record highs on Wednesday, tracking the global rally driven by a weaker dollar, safe-haven demand, expectations of a US rate cut following softer jobs data and a looming government shutdown.
According to the All Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA), the local price of gold rose by Rs3,500 per tola to reach Rs410,278, while the 10-gram rate climbed by Rs3,001 to settle at Rs351,747.
On Tuesday, the yellow metal had already posted a sharp rise, with per-tola price touching Rs406,778 after a gain of Rs3,178.
In the international market, spot gold traded within a volatile range as investors weighed uncertainty over the US government’s budget deadlock. Interactive Commodities Director Adnan Agar said gold touched a high of $3,895, a low of $3,853, and was last hovering around $3,864.
“The market has gone so high that it’s now taking a breather,” Agar said, noting that gold’s rally appears exhausted in the short term. “If the US government shutdown continues and jobs data is delayed, safe-haven demand may sustain prices. But if Washington resolves the impasse soon, gold could see a correction, because it needs an economic reason to adjust downwards.”
Spot gold was up 0.2% at $3,864.16 an ounce at 11:20 am ET (1520 GMT) after touching a record peak of $3,895.09, according to Reuters. US gold futures for December delivery gained 0.5% to $3,891.10.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani rupee inched up against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Wednesday. By the day’s close, the currency stood at 281.31 against the greenback, marking an improvement of one paisa from Tuesday’s close at 281.32.
The dollar weakened against a basket of other leading currencies, making dollar-priced gold more affordable for overseas buyers.
Moreover, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday raised a total of Rs2.13 trillion through the auction of Pakistan Investment Bonds – Floating Rate (PFL) and Market Treasury Bills (MTBs).
According to the central bank’s Domestic Markets & Monetary Management Department, the auction of 10-year floating-rate PIBs (semi-annual) attracted bids worth Rs394 billion. Out of these, the SBP accepted Rs244 billion in competitive bids at a cut-off price of 94.5465, along with Rs2.75 billion in non-competitive bids. The total accepted amount stood at Rs246.75 billion.
Separately, the SBP sold MTBs worth Rs1.88 trillion, including both competitive and non-competitive bids, across different maturities. Data breakdown shows that Rs310.2 billion was raised through one-month bills at a cut-off yield of 11.15%, Rs43.5 billion in three-month bills at 11.05%, Rs66.8 billion in six-month bills at 11.05%, and Rs220.9 billion in 12-month bills at 11.19%.
The latest auction results indicate that yields have remained largely stable around the 11% mark, reflecting steady market expectations on the interest rate outlook. The government continues to rely heavily on short-term borrowing while maintaining demand for longer tenor floating-rate PIBs.
Two Delta Air Lines planes collided at New York City’s LaGuardia Airport on Wednesday evening, leaving at least one person injured. The incident happened at around 9:56 pm local time when two regional jets came into contact while moving slowly on the taxiway.
As per reports, one of the aircraft, Delta Flight 5047, had landed from Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) and was heading to its gate. At the same time, another Delta regional jet, identified as Flight 5155, was also approaching the gate.
Two Delta planes collided while taxiing pic.twitter.com/Rn7CvlPFnA
— MJTruthUltra (MJTruthUltra) October 2, 2025
According to the air traffic control (ATC) audio cited by ABC News, the right wing of Flight 5155 struck the nose of Flight 5047. The impact caused the wing to break off and left visible damage to the second jet, including reports of windshield damage.
CBS reported that a correspondent at LaGuardia first posted video of the crash, saying his colleague was onboard Flight 5047 when the collision occurred. Both planes were moving at a low speed, but the impact was strong enough to cause significant damage. At least one injury has been confirmed, though details about the condition of the injured passenger have not been released.
LaGuardia Airport is the second-busiest airport in New York City after John F. Kennedy International Airport, which mostly handles domestic flights.
David GilyeatSouth of England
Didcot FoodbankVolunteers at a food bank say they are having to make changes to the services they offer because of a reduction in donations.
Didcot Emergency Foodbank was launched in 2009 by volunteers at Didcot Baptist Church but is down to reserves of about £10,000.
Manager Andrew Snell said: “This year to date we will have had £29,000 income in cash, and we will have spent close to £60,000 on food, so there’s a big gap there.”
Previously the food bank provided support to its clients twice a week for six weeks, with a three-month gap before another referral. It is now changing this to once a week for six weeks, followed by a longer six-month gap.
“We’ve gone back to being what we were before covid, which is an emergency food bank, as opposed to helping families on low incomes who are just about coping, or not quite coping,” Mr Snell explained.
The food bank receives about 75% of its donations via cash, and 25% from physical food donations, though five years ago it was the other way around.
“People were giving us the actual food but not so much in the way of money,” Mr Snell said.
“People were so generous in Didcot and the surrounding villages, they gave us more than we would ever need [during covid] and that’s where the reserve came from.”
GoogleThe food bank still expects to support about 6,000 clients this year.
Mr Snell said: “It’s been absolutely great to be able to help families who are on the borderline, and obviously we’ll regret not being able to do that in the immediate future.
“We’ll be looking at things as we go along to see if we can relax what we’ve put in place but that’s a little way down the line. It’s a matter of regret.”
He added: “I hope we’ll be able to increase the donations and go back to full-on help for people who are going to get a bit squeezed out at the moment.”
South Oxfordshire District Council’s community hub, Citizens Advice, schools and nurseries, medical practices, health visitors, housing associations and certain charities can officially refer people in need to the food bank.
New Delhi: Amid the ongoing festive season, the Union government has released an additional tax devolution of Rs 1,01,603 crore to state governments, the Finance Ministry said on Wednesday. This is an additional amount to the normal monthly devolution, which is scheduled to be released on October 10.
According to the ministry, the decision was taken in view festive season to enable states to accelerate capital spending and finance their development and welfare-related expenditure. Uttar Pradesh, the nation’s most populous state, got the highest–Rs 18,227 crore, followed by Bihar (Rs 10,219 crore), Madhya Pradesh (Rs 7,976 crore), West Bengal (Rs 7,644 crore), Maharashtra (Rs 6,418 crore), and Rajasthan (Rs 6,123 crore).
Andhra Pradesh (Rs 4,112 crore), Odisha (Rs 4,601 crore), Tamil Nadu (Rs 4,144 crore), Karnataka (Rs 3,705 crore), and Jharkhand (Rs 3,360 crore) also received significant additional tax devolution. Earlier, the Finance Ministry said that the Centre had transferred Rs 4,28,544 crore to state governments as devolution of share of taxes during April-July, which is Rs 61,914 crore higher than the previous year.
Meanwhile, the Central government had received Rs 10,95,209 crore during the period, which comprises 31.3 per cent of the corresponding budget estimates (BE) for 2025-26. Of this, a sum of Rs 6,61,812 crore constitutes net tax revenue to the Centre, Rs 4,03,608 crore was non-tax revenue, and Rs 29,789 crore was part of non-debt capital receipts.
Total Expenditure incurred by the union government during the time frame was Rs 15,63,625 crore, which constitutes 30.9 per cent of the corresponding BE 2025-26. Out of this total amount, Rs 12,16,699 crore was on the revenue account and Rs 3,46,926 crore is on the capital account, which is spent on large infrastructure projects.
Interest payments made up Rs 4,46,690 crore of the total revenue expenditure, while major subsidies account for Rs 1,13,592 crore.
Two Delta Jets Collide At LaGuardia Airport; Wing Detached, One Injured
Funding shortage forces Didcot food bank to make changes
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