*MORNING NEWS* *Tuesday, 25 February 2025* *Oil prices gain for a second day as US sanctions on Iran raise supply concerns* | Oil prices rose for a second day on Tuesday as the U.S. imposed fresh sanctions on Middle Eastern producer Iran that increased concerns supply might tighten. Brent crude futures rose 38 cents, or 0.51%, to $75.16 a barrel by 0217 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 43 cents, or 0.61%, to $71.13 a barrel. Both contracts gained in Monday's session after a $2 drop on Friday. https://tinyurl.com/2bkv7hfn *IMF opens talks on carbon levy, $1.5bn climate finance* | The IMF’s technical team on climate finance initiated discussions with Pakistani authorities on Monday, exploring the potential imposition of a carbon levy in the upcoming budget. The talks aim to enhance the existing loan by an additional $1.2 to $1.5 billion. The IMF’s existing loan of $7 billion under Extended Fund Facility (EFF) might augment the loan from Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) arrangement of $1.2 to $1.5 billion so the total loan amount might jack up to $8.2 to $8.5 billion. https://tinyurl.com/2d34t227 *Pakistan, Azerbaijan eye formalising $2bn investment in April* | Underscoring the need to enhance bilateral trade between Pakistan and Azerbaijan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday expressed optimism about both countries formalising agreements for investment projects worth $2 billion in April during President Ilham Aliyev's visit. "This is going to be a mutually beneficial arrangement for both countries," said the premier — who is on a two-day official visit to the Central Asian country — while addressing a business forum organised in collaboration with the Export and Investment Promotion Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (AZPROMO). https://tinyurl.com/27x4ndgt *BD and Pakistan resume direct trade after over 50 years* | Bangladesh has resumed direct trade with Pakistan for the first time since its secession from the latter in 1971, with the first shipment of 50,000 tonnes of rice leaving Port Qasim under a government-to-government deal, officials said. The deal follows an improvement in diplomatic relations since an interim government in Bangladesh led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus taking over in the wake of the protests that drove then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina out of the country. https://tinyurl.com/23sujq5d *Pakistan’s LNG imports threaten local gas fields* | Pakistan’s local gas fields are shutting down, as the import of LNG from Qatar under an agreement is already straining the country’s aging pipeline infrastructure, a Senate committee was told Monday. Officials briefed the lawmakers that under an agreement with Qatar, Pakistan imports 10 LNG cargoes each month, sidelining domestic gas production. Officials warned that deteriorating pipelines, already under immense pressure, face a growing risk of rupture, while inadequate storage facilities further complicate supply management. https://tinyurl.com/23aaw4lc *Govt eyes Rs8 per unit power tariff cut in two months* | The government is negotiating with nearly four dozen renewable independent power producers (IPPs) and also the state-owned generation plants to cut the electricity tariff by up to Rs8 per unit within next two months, a senior Power Division official said on Monday. In a parallel effort, officials plan to engage the International Monetary Fund (IMF) next month to seek approval for reducing taxes on the electricity bills, including 18% General Sales Tax (GST), which significantly burdens the consumers. https://tinyurl.com/2ynsgwf9 *Contracts revision: Non-compliant IPPs, plants to face forensic audit* | The federal government on Monday announced that any power plant or Independent Power Producer (IPP) refusing to accept its proposal for revising contracts will face a forensic audit to trace the money trail. This statement was made by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister, Muhammad Ali, in response to a query by the Opposition Leader in the Senate, Senator Syed Shibli Faraz, during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Power chaired by Senator Mohsin Aziz. https://tinyurl.com/27fajrsz *Solar net metering consumers; Discovering Rs9.8bn loss, FTO orders 18pc GST levy* | The Federal Tax Ombudsman (FTO) discovering huge revenue loss of Rs9.8 billion, passed the order for charging 18 percent sales tax from solar net metering electricity consumers across the country. The same is the position with respect to Withholding of Income Tax under section 235 of the Income Tax Ordinance. In this regard, the FTO has issued instructions to the power distribution companies and FBR’s field formations for immediate implementation here on Monday. https://tinyurl.com/2xjevvm7 *Mohmand hydel project to start generation in two years* | The 800MW Mohmand Dam Hydropower Project will start cheap and green/clean power generation by 2027, as the project, following diversion of River Swat in August last year, is progressing ahead at a good pace with the construction work on all key sites. https://tinyurl.com/23ske8yz _Regards_ _Ismail Iqbal Securities_