Rupee gains against dollar, euro

KARACHI: Rupee grew strong against dollar and euro in the open market on Thursday while the local currency recorded loss compared to British pound and Kuwait dinar.

Dollar closed at Rs80.95 in the open market while it finished at Rs80.45 in the inter-bank.

British pound gained Rs2 to close at Rs122; Canadian dollar improves by paisas 50 to Rs67; Kuwaiti dinar increases by Rs2 to Rs275; euro eases Rs1.20 to Rs107; Japanese yen Rs0.805; Saudi riyal Rs21.45 and; UAE dirham gains paisas 10 to Rs22.

Asian markets crude prices at the end of week falling

SINGAPORE: Oil prices lingered near $50 a barrel Friday in Asia as investors weighed a possible second-half recovery of U.S. crude demand against recent dismal economic data reflecting a severe recession.

Benchmark crude for May delivery fell 33 cents to $49.65 a barrel by midday in Singapore in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract on Thursday rose 73 cents to settle at $49.98.

Oil prices have bobbed around $50 a barrel this month as the current backdrop of high unemployment, weak consumer demand and falling corporate profits has tempered investor optimism about an eventual economic rebound.

Falling crude demand and rising inventories have kept prices from rising higher. Storage facilities for crude oil in the U.S. have been swelling since the end of February, bloating to a nearly 19-year high last week.

Umpires panel for Pak-Aus series announced

KARACHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Friday the umpire and referee appointments for upcoming five ODIs and one Twenty20 International series between Australia and Pakistan starting in Dubai, United Arab Emirates from April 22.

With the staging of the first ODI in the five match series, Dubai Sports City Cricket Stadium set to become the 172nd venue in the world to host an ODI.

Former New Zealand Captain Jeff Crowe of the Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees will lead the playing control team in the series.

The ICC-appointed on-field umpire for the ODIs will be Billy Bowden of New Zealand, who will supervise matches with Pakistan's Asad Rauf, Aleem Dar, Nadeem Ghouri and Zameer Haider.

When the brand-new Dubai Sports City Cricket Stadium hosts the opening match of the series on April 22, it will become the 172nd venue and the third in the UAE to stage an ODI.

Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Zayed Stadium, which will host the last three ODIs of the series, became the 157th ODI venue when it staged the Pakistan versus India match on April 18, 2006 while Sharjah Cricket Stadium was the 58th ODI venue when it hosted its first contest in April 1984.

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CJP seeks lawyers’ help to end corruption

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has urged the lawyers to play their role in eradicating corruption from judiciary.

He expressed these views while speaking to a 23-member lawyers’ team headed by President Multan Bar Association here on Friday.

The chief justice said lawyers are sincere and honest to their profession.

He further said that lawyers should play their part to get rid of corruption from the ranks of judiciary.

FoDP pledge $5.28 bn to help stabilise Pakistan: FM

KARACHI: Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi said on Friday that Friends of Pakistan (FoDP) have pledged up to 5.28 bn dollars to help stabilise Pakistan in Tokyo ministerial meeting.

Talking to Geo news, the foreign minister thanked all donor countries who extended their support to Pakistan to meet country’s economic challenges and effectively address the issue of terrorism. Qureshi also thanked the government of Japan in o ... Full Story