Business
Reserves rise modestly by $22m | The Express Tribune
KARACHI:
Pakistan’s liquid foreign exchange reserves saw a modest rise during the week ended September 19, 2025, as the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reported an increase of $22 million.
According to the central bank, its reserves climbed to $14,379.5 million, up from $14,357.5 million a week earlier. This brought the country’s total liquid foreign reserves to $19,793.3 million.
The breakdown showed that the net foreign reserves held by commercial banks stood at $5,413.8 million, while the bulk remained with the SBP.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani Rupee (PKR) posted a slight appreciation of 0.01% against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Thursday, closing at 281.41, according to data from the SBP. This marked a minor rebound of two paisa from Wednesday’s close at 281.43, reflecting continued stability amid global currency fluctuations.
Ismail Iqbal Securities noted that the PKR’s daily uptick comes despite a calendar year-to-date depreciation of 1.01%, while it has strengthened 0.84% since the fiscal year began in July.
“At the end of the trading session, the PKR appreciated by 0.01% day-on-day against the greenback to settle at 281.41,” the brokerage house stated in its market update on X.
Moreover, gold prices in Pakistan fell on Thursday, mirroring a downturn in the international market where the precious metal trimmed earlier gains after a surprise drop in weekly US jobless claims. Investors are now focused on the upcoming US inflation data that could influence the Federal Reserve’s rate decisions.
Locally, the price of gold per tola dropped by Rs2,000 to settle at Rs396,800, according to the All Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA). The 10-gram gold rate declined by Rs1,714 to Rs340,192. This follows an unchanged rate of Rs398,800 per tola on Wednesday.
Spot gold was steady at $3,735.09 per ounce as of 11:58 am EDT (1558 GMT) after rising as much as 0.6% earlier in the session, according to Reuters. Prices hit a record high of $3,790.82 on Tuesday. US gold futures for December delivery fell 0.1% to $3,766.
“Jobless claims came in at 218,000 versus expectations of 235,000, a slightly hawkish print that may temper some (rate) easing expectations, but it’s not enough to alter the overall trend,” said Peter Grant, Vice President and Senior Metals Strategist at Zaner Metals.
Interactive Commodities Director Adnan Agar noted that the decline in the local market aligns with global trends, with gold prices peaking at $3,761 before easing. “The market hit a low of $3,717 yesterday (Wednesday) and is coming down a bit today (Thursday),” he said.
Meanwhile, silver surged to a record high of around $45 and Rs4,663 locally, contrasting with gold’s slight retreat.
But Spencer says his business is being squeezed from every angle – as well as minimum wage, he has had increases in business rates, national insurance, and statutory sick pay. He also expects energy bills to go up because of the war in the Middle East.
Visa Inc. signage on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026.
Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Visa is launching six new tools using artificial intelligence to modernize the process of disputing credit card charges, the company told CNBC exclusively.
The digital payments company said the tools are designed to reduce the costs and frustration of “outdated” dispute processes for multiple entities involved in the payments process: merchants, issuers and acquirers.
“Some of the challenges are these back-office systems are still largely manual,” Andrew Torre, Visa’s president of value-added services, told CNBC. “We really had to think differently about how we approach this at scale.”
In 2025, Torre said, Visa processed more than 103 million charge disputes globally, marking a 35% increase since 2019.
“Our goal is to streamline this as much as possible,” Torre said. “We’d love to be able to see that growth rate come down.”
Visa’s new tools are part of a larger push by major banks and financial institutions to incorporate AI into their businesses — both internally and in consumer-facing applications. JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs have both said they’re already using AI to hire fewer people. BNY spent $3.8 billion on technology in 2025, or about 19% of its revenue.
Visa said three of its six new tools focus on merchants, allowing them to address potential disputes before they escalate, managing disputes with generative AI responses and providing a deeper level of detail on order insights to manage confusion over unfamiliar charges.
For example, Torre said, many disputes are borne out of cardholders not recognizing a specific charge on their statements. With the new tool, Visa will be able to provide further details to financial institutions to show cardholders that data at a deeper level, according to the company.
The other three tools are built for issuers and acquirers, using predictive AI models to aid in case-by-case analysis, analyzing documents for summaries and auto fill and establishing an AI-powered dispute platform to manage the entire process in one location, Visa said.
“We’ll be able to get them insights and data so they can move from being reactive to proactive,” Torre said.
Torre said Visa’s new AI tools are part of a broader host of solutions for consumers, including a subscription manager announced last week that allows cardholders to cancel unnecessary subscriptions directly on the manager.
The automation will save time, money and unnecessary confusion for both parties, he added. Most of the tools will be generally available later this year, the company said.
“We really believe that disputes in this solution makes it much easier to manage and resolve,” Torre said. “We think it has better outcomes for everyone.”
Business
Stock market today (April 1, 2026): Which are the top gainers and losers in Nifty50 and BSE Sensex today? Check list – The Times of India
Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty ended nearly 2 per cent higher on Wednesday, starting the new financial year on a firm footing as global markets rallied on hopes of a potential de-escalation in the ongoing West Asia conflict.The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 1,186.77 points or 1.65 per cent to settle at 73,134.32. During intra-day trade, it surged 2,017.03 points or 2.80 per cent to 73,964.58.The broader NSE Nifty rose 348 points or 1.56 per cent to close at 22,679.40. A decline in crude oil prices also supported investor sentiment.
Nifty50 top gainers
- Trent (+7.00%)
- InterGlobe Aviation (+6.02%)
- Kwality Wall’s (+5.79%)
- Adani Ports SEZ (+5.55%)
- BEL (+4.51%)
- SBI (+3.93%)
- Eicher Motors (+3.64%)
- Jio Financial Services (+3.50%)
- Eternal (+3.30%)
Nifty50 top losers
- Dr Reddy’s (-3.61%)
- HDFC Life (-2.99%)
- Cipla (-2.32%)
- Sun Pharma (-1.64%)
- NTPC (-1.62%)
- Apollo Hospitals (-1.53%)
- Power Grid (-1.12%)
- Max Healthcare (-0.36%)
- UltraTech Cement (-0.29%)
Sensex top gainers
- Trent (+7.00%)
- InterGlobe Aviation (+6.02%)
- Adani Ports SEZ (+5.55%)
- BEL (+4.51%)
- SBI (+3.93%)
- Eternal (+3.30%)
- L&T (+2.96%)
- Titan Company (+2.89%)
Sensex top losers
- Sun Pharma (-1.64%)
- NTPC (-1.62%)
- Power Grid (-1.12%)
- UltraTech Cement (-0.29%)
- Bharti Airtel (-0.03%)
“Indian equity markets opened the new financial year on a positive note, with stocks soaring on fresh optimism surrounding a potential de-escalation of the Middle East conflict and easing of energy supply disruptions,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money.He added that US President Donald Trump’s remarks suggesting the US could withdraw from Iran “whether we have a deal or not” within the next two to three weeks provided the trigger for a broad rally in global risk assets.“Indian equity markets opened FY27 on a strong note, driven by improving risk appetite following US President Donald Trump’s remarks hinting at a potential resolution to the West Asia conflict,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments Limited.In the US, markets ended significantly higher on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq Composite surging 3.83 per cent, the S&P 500 rising 2.91 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gaining 2.49 per cent.Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined 0.22 per cent to USD 103.7 per barrel.Stock markets were closed on Tuesday on account of Shri Mahavir Jayanti.Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 11,163.06 crore on Monday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 14,894.72 crore, according to exchange data.
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