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PM suggests uniform gas tariffs for fertiliser | The Express Tribune

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PM suggests uniform gas tariffs for fertiliser | The Express Tribune


Gas utilities. Photo: file


ISLAMABAD:

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed officials to introduce uniform gas prices and mulled over a plan to put a tag on fertiliser bags.

The prime minister is also considering ending subsidised gas supply to fertiliser plants and extending direct subsidy to farmers through the Benazir Income Support programme (BISP).

Sources told The Express Tribune that a committee on gas supply, headed by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, was working on uniform gas prices for fertiliser plants.

While considering the allocation of Mari gas to fertiliser manufacturers, the PM gave the directive to introduce uniform tariffs. He noted that a committee was already working on introducing such tariffs. In another meeting, chaired by the premier, a plan to allocate gas to the fertiliser plants was considered. Sources said that it was proposed to extend direct subsidy to farmers through BISP rather than providing subsidised gas to the fertiliser industry.

At present, the government is working on digitising all sectors, including petrol filling stations, to compile data on oil supply and sales. This initiative has been taken in the backdrop of a proposal of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), which wants to closely monitor petroleum sales and purchases to curb tax evasion. In the fertiliser sector, the farmers are facing an artificial increase in prices due to the dumping of stocks by dealers. There were also reports of tax evasion in the industry.

The planned tagging of fertiliser bags will help government authorities to gather sales and purchase data and keep a close watch on stocks. It will also assist the FBR in checking tax evasion.

In a recent meeting, the cabinet ratified a decision of the economic decision-making body to allocate gas from a field of Mari Energies to the fertiliser plants. The meeting was informed that the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) had approved the supply of locally produced gas to three fertiliser plants from Mari’s new reservoirs, namely Ghazij/ Shawal. Engro’s base fertiliser plant on Mari network will get gas from Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL). It was pointed out that Mari Energies was producing and supplying gas from four reservoirs, which included Habib Rahi Limestone, Sui Upper Limestone/ Sui Main Limestone, Ghazij/ Shawal and Goru-B Deep.

Earlier, the Mari management raised the issue of allocating gas to the fertiliser sector, saying it was facing circular debt, which stifled work on energy projects. The company said that it required substantial finances to execute plans of drilling offshore fields but noted that the circular debt was haunting its investment outlook. It said that the prevailing circular debt did not allow the company to undertake an investment of over $1 billion for full-scale development of the Ghazi Ghaisakhori field. At present, the country is facing a circular debt of Rs2.6 trillion.

Mari Energies is pushing the government to allocate gas to the fertiliser sector, adding that it is unable to invest around $1 billion for the development of Ghazi Ghaisakhori field without assurance of sustainable gas offtake and timely payments by buyers.

In a letter, the company said a recent study conducted by Wood Mackenzie indicated a substantial decline in gas demand on the network of public utilities, particularly from the power sector. It was observed that higher tariffs and a levy on captive power plants had further constrained system demand.



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Intellia Therapeutics says its Crispr-based treatment succeeds in pivotal trial

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Intellia Therapeutics says its Crispr-based treatment succeeds in pivotal trial


Intellia Therapeutics, building exterior and company sign, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.

Spencer Grant | Universal Images Group | Getty Images

Intellia Therapeutics said its Crispr-based treatment for a rare swelling condition met its goals in a late-stage trial, marking a milestone for the field of gene editing and putting the company on track to seek approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The company’s treatment uses Nobel Prize-winning technology Crispr to edit DNA and turn off the gene that controls production of a peptide that’s overactive in people with hereditary angioedema, causing them to experience potentially life-threatening swelling attacks. Intellia’s treatment is administered once through an hourslong infusion, making the edits directly in the liver.

Intellia said the one-time treatment reduced attacks by 87% compared with a placebo, meeting the study’s main goal. Six months after treatment, 62% of patients were free from attacks and weren’t using other therapies, Intellia said.

The company described the safety and tolerability of the treatment as “favorable,” reporting the most common side effects were infusion-related reactions, headaches and fatigue. Analysts were closely watching safety in the trial since a patient in a separate trial of a different treatment from Intellia died. That patient developed a liver injury and ultimately died from septic shock following an ulcer, according to the company.

“When you think about where we started with Crispr, just 12 years ago with some of the fundamental insights, I think there was a lot of talk about what might be possible, and we’ve had reports along the way in terms of milestones, but this is the first Phase 3 data in any indication with in vivo Crispr where you’re actually changing a gene that causes disease,” said Intellia CEO John Leonard.

The only FDA-approved Crispr-based medicine comes from Vertex Pharmaceuticals. Called Casgevy, the gene editing is done outside the body, or ex vivo. The process requires collecting a person’s blood cells, making the edits outside the body, then reinfusing them back into a patient. Intellia’s treatment, meanwhile, makes the edits inside the body, or in vivo.

Intellia said it has started a rolling application with the FDA and plans to complete the filing in the second half of this year. The company expects to launch the treatment in the U.S. in the first half of next year, if it’s approved.

If approved, Intellia’s treatment, lonvoguran ziclumeran, will compete with about a dozen other chronic drugs for HAE. Despite the allure of a one-time treatment, genetic medicines haven’t always been a commercial successes. BioMarin withdrew its gene therapy for Hemophilia A because of weak sales, for example.

Leonard said there are important differences between the two, like the fact that BioMarin’s therapy faced questions about how long the effects would last. In contrast, he said Intellia hasn’t seen a single case in almost six years where the effects diminished over time.

Despite the results, he’s reluctant to call Intellia’s treatment a functional cure.

“I think this is a tipping point for the disease and tipping point for Crispr-based in vivo therapy where you can make a change [and] it’s permanent,” Leonard said. “And, as far as we can tell, we don’t have a single patient in this program or other program where there’s been any waning of the effect of what we did to the gene or the effect of what we’ve seen with the clinical aspects of the disease itself. So it’s pretty exciting.”

Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that a patient in a separate trial of a different treatment from Intellia developed acute liver injury and ultimately died from septic shock following an ulcer.

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Claire’s closes all 154 stores in UK and Ireland with loss of 1,300 jobs

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Claire’s closes all 154 stores in UK and Ireland with loss of 1,300 jobs



All of the chain’s standalone stores have stopped trading in the UK and Ireland.



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Domino’s Pizza stock falls on disappointing sales — and CEO thinks more chains will follow

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Domino’s Pizza stock falls on disappointing sales — and CEO thinks more chains will follow


A pedestrian walks by a Domino’s Pizza on Dec. 9, 2025 in San Francisco, California.

Justin Sullivan | Getty Images

Domino’s Pizza stock fell 10% in morning trading on Monday after it reported weaker-than-expected U.S. same-store sales growth.

The chain’s domestic same-store sales rose just 0.9%, lower than the 2.3% bump expected by Wall Street analysts, based on StreetAccount estimates.

“We’re not happy with it,” CEO Russell Weiner told CNBC.

The pizza chain also lowered its full-year U.S. same-store sales forecast to low-single digit growth, down from its prior projection that U.S. same-store sales will increase 3%.

Weiner said he expects more fast-food chains to report similar headwinds from winter weather and weak consumer sentiment, which took a dive in March due to spiking fuel prices caused by the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

“One of the bad things about reporting first is you don’t get to hear about anybody else,” Weiner said.

Domino’s kicked off the earnings season for restaurant chains. Starbucks is on deck after the bell on Tuesday, and Chipotle Mexican Grill and Pizza Hut owner Yum Brands are expected to share their results on Wednesday. Rival Papa John’s will report its earnings next Thursday.

During the quarter, Domino’s also faced stiffer competition from rival pizza chains. Papa John’s and Pizza Hut both matched Domino’s $9.99 “Best Deal Ever” with promotions at the same price point. And Little Caesars undercut Domino’s $6.99 Mix & Match deal with a $5.99 version.

“People are seeing what we’re doing, and they’re sick of losing share, and they’re coming at it,” Weiner said, adding that he still expects Papa John’s and Pizza Hut to report same-store sales declines for the quarter despite the new promotions.

Looking ahead, Weiner expressed confidence that Domino’s will prove itself in the long run.

“Domino’s has got a bigger advertising budget than our second two competitors combined,” he said. “And those competitors are both going up for sale, so we know things aren’t good there right now.”

Yum announced in November that it was exploring strategic options for Pizza Hut, which could include a sale. And Papa John’s is reportedly in talks with Qatari-backed Irth Capital to go private. Both chains have also announced plans to close hundreds of restaurants this year, which could further boost Domino’s dominant position in the pizza category.

And if either Pizza Hut or Papa John’s goes private, Weiner said he expects that a new owner would shutter even more locations — a win for Domino’s.

Shares of Domino’s have lost nearly a third of their value over the last year. The company’s market cap has fallen to roughly $11.2 billion.

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