Photo: Telecommunications towers (file image)
Business & FinancePakistan weighs international arbitration against Etisalat over $800m unpaid PTCL dues
Pakistan is preparing to take Etisalat to international arbitration to recover around $800 million still unpaid from the 2005 PTCL privatisation, plus opportunity cost since 2008 and damages, after the cabinet directed the attorney general to act.
Photo: The Sydney Opera House in Australia (file image)
Business & FinanceAustralian household spending rises 0.6% in September, beating forecasts as petrol and travel lift totals
Australian household spending rose 0.6% in September to A$82.6 billion, beating forecasts of a 0.2% rise, as higher petrol prices and a boost to air travel from major sporting events lifted totals despite higher borrowing costs.
Photo: Workers on a factory assembly line
Business & FinanceChina’s factory growth eases slightly in October but stays in expansion, private PMI shows
China’s RatingDog General Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index edged down to 52.0 in October from 52.1 in September, beating a Reuters poll forecast of 51.6, as output rose at its fastest pace in six months even as export order growth slowed to a three-month low. Figures checked on Monday morning, 2 November 2026 (Pakistan time).
Photo: The Hanoi skyline
NewsVietnam cuts electricity price by 2% and scraps gasoline tax from today to ease costs for households and businesses
Vietnam has cut its average retail electricity price by 2% and removed the special consumption tax on gasoline from 1 November, in a five-month package aimed at supporting economic stability and lowering costs for households and businesses.
Photo: A manufacturing workshop in China
ChinaChina's factory activity contracts at fastest pace in three months as October PMI falls to 49.3
China's official manufacturing purchasing managers' index fell to 49.3 in October from 50.1 in September, missing forecasts and returning to contraction as soft demand, including for exports, weighed on factories.