VIF Neighbourhood News Digest: May 30, 2019

PAKISTAN

Rs1.83tr national development outlay approved: Dawn

May 30, 2019

Adding about 300 new federal projects to the portfolio, the National Economic Council (NEC) on Wednesday approved a consolidated national development programme for the next fiscal year envisaging Rs1.837 trillion investments and four per cent economic growth rate. The NEC meeting, which was presided over by Prime Minister Imran Khan and attended by all the chief ministers as well as the prime minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, also cleared in principle the 12th five-year plan (2018-23) that forecasts 6.5pc economic growth rate by terminal year i.e. 2023 while mainly relying on the acceleration of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor’s second phase. Click here to read... [2]

AFGHANISTAN

Moscow Delegates Form Working Group: Tolo News

May 30, 2019

Delegates of Moscow meeting have assigned a committee to work on a joint statement of their meetings with the Taliban, Fawzia Kofi, one of the delegates said on Thursday. One of the differences on Wednesday’s meeting was the discussions on ceasefire and despite repeated request, the Taliban has not agreed on this, Koofi said. This comes as a group of Afghan politicians led by former President Hamid Karzai and a 14-member Taliban team led by the co-founder of the group Abdul Ghani Baradar sat for the second day in Moscow on Wednesday to discuss the Afghan peace, but behind the closed doors. The group rejected the calls for a ceasefire which was the main demand by Afghan politicians – who publicly raised the demand at a ceremony in Moscow on the centenary of Afghanistan-Russia diplomatic ties on Tuesday, May 28. Click here to read... [3]

NEPAL

Government revises tax structure and changes income tax slab for salary earners: Kathmandu Post

May 30, 2019

The government has revised the tax structure as part of its bid to transition into a more sustainable revenue source generated through internal economic activities rather than existing import-based revenues. Tax revenues and public borrowing are major contributors to the government’s financial resources, but it still relies primarily on tax revenues generated on imports. Click here to read... [4]

CHINA

Xi calls for bolstering reform, development: China Daily

May 30, 2019

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, called on Wednesday for further efforts to prevent and eliminate major problems in the nation's reform and development against the backdrop that uncertainties and instabilities are on the rise. Click here to read... [5]

UN report finds creative China is booming, supporting Asian trade: Xinhuanet

May 30, 2019

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said Wednesday that one of its recent reports on the creative economy shows that China's trade in creative goods and services is outstripping those of other countries and regions. Click here to read... [6]