Welcome 2018: New Year celebrations kick off from New Zealand with amazing fireworks (VIDEOS)

Muhammad Irfan 08:06 PM | 31 Dec, 2017

LAHORE - The New Year celebrations have begun across the globe. Samoa, the tiny pacific island was the first country to welcome in 2018, with New Zealand following an hour later.

Half a tonne of fireworks were set off from Auckland’s Sky Tower as the clock struck midnight at 11: am GMT.

Following the Kiwis, Australians welcomed 2018 with a rainbow-themed fireworks in Sydney. About 1.6 million people attended the fireworks around the edge of Sydney Harbour.

https://youtu.be/AlGMibJgRFk

https://youtu.be/pHCKgAuODRM

About 1.5 million people packed the city’s foreshore to watch the pyrotechnics light up the sky above the historic bridge and the iconic opera house, the first major celebrations worldwide after New Zealand.

https://youtu.be/ZOKwg48mm3c

Over 24 hours, cities across the world will gradually sign off 2017 and welcome the new year, from New Zealand and Australia, the celebrations will move to Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and finally the Americas.

Toughest security in years:

Stricter security has been a key focus amid fears that crowds could be targets for vehicle and other terror attacks.

In Australia, the stronger police presence included some officers carrying semi-automatic rifles in Sydney and bollards used as barriers against vehicles.

Earlier in December, one man was killed and more than a dozen hurt when a man ploughed a car into a crowd of pedestrians in Melbourne.

Other cities are also on alert following deadly vehicle assaults over the past two years in Barcelona, Nice and London.

New York’s Times Square celebrations are set to go ahead despite the Arctic chill gripping much of the central and northeastern United States and Canada.

But revellers there will be guarded by the strongest security presence in years after two recent attacks apparently inspired by the Islamic State group.

Muhammad Irfan

The writer is a staff member. He has been affiliated with Pakistan's leading English newspapers and worked as News Producer at FM 107.4. Death (as...he believes...life is a station, and death is a longest journey from seen to ...

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Rupee gains massive recovery against US dollar after SBP relaxes rules for banks

KARACHI – The Pakistani rupee experienced a significant surge in its value in the open market against the dollar.

This surge came after a recent directive from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), allowing banks to purchase dollars at the interbank market rate for international card payments. The objective of this move was to narrow the exchange rate gap between the official and informal markets.

According to the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan, the currency market witnessed the dollar being traded at Rs298, compared to its previous day’s closing rate of 311.

The SBP’s decision was influenced by the International Monetary Fund’s demand for Pakistan to stabilize its currency market before resuming a $6.5 billion bailout program.

In a circular, the central bank stated, “In response to the feedback received from various stakeholders, Authorized Dealers are now permitted to buy USD from the Interbank market to settle card-based cross border transactions with international payment schemes (IPS).”

Market analysts had predicted a decline in the value of the rupee following the implementation of these new guidelines.

Zafar Paracha, the General Secretary of the ECAP, expressed that the SBP’s decision was timely and appropriate. He anticipated that it would lead to a decrease of 20 to 25 rupees in the open market currency rate. Paracha also noted that aligning the rates in the official and informal markets would bolster remittance inflows.

Pracha further emphasized that significant disparities in rates between the official and informal markets encourage transactions outside of the official banking system.

https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/01-Jun-2023/today-s-currency-exchange-rates-in-pakistan-dollar-euro-pound-riyal-rates-on-june-1-2023

Gold & Silver Rate

Today's gold rates in Pakistan – June 1, 2023

KARACHI – The price of a single tola of 24-karat gold in Pakistan is Rs 229,000 on Thursday. The price of 10 grams of 24k gold was recorded at Rs197,620.

Likewise, 10 grams of 22k gold were being traded for Rs181,150 while a single tola of 22-karat gold was being sold at Rs 211,290.

Note: The gold rate in Pakistan is fluctuating according to the international market so the price is never been fixed. The below rates are provided by local gold markets and Sarafa Markets of different cities.

City	Gold	Silver
Lahore	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Karachi	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Islamabad	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Peshawar	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Quetta	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Sialkot	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Attock	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Gujranwala	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Jehlum	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Multan	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Bahawalpur	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Gujrat	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Nawabshah	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Chakwal	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Hyderabad	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Nowshehra	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Sargodha	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Faisalabad	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125
Mirpur	PKR 229,000	PKR 2125