Gold rebounded on Friday, recovering from a nearly one-week low in the previous session, as investors awaited key US inflation figures for cues on the direction of interest rates following robust jobs data that tempered rate cut expectations.

Spot gold was up 0.6 per cent at $4,949.99 per ounce as of 06:26 GMT, but has lost 0.2pc so far this week. US gold futures for April delivery climbed 0.4pc to $4,968.0 per ounce.

“With volatilities as heightened as they are and these big round levels offering, you know, sort of indicators of where positioning might be, big breaks certainly accelerate these moves,” Capital.com senior market analyst Kyle Rodda said.

Gold dropped about 3pc to a near one-week low on Thursday, breaking below the $5,000-an-ounce key support as selling pressure intensified after an equities rout.

“Precious metals came down with equities last night. They didn’t really have much of a macro catalyst,” Rodda added.

Asian shares retreated from record highs on Friday as worries about shrinking margins in the tech sector hit the likes of Apple.

The yellow metal also came under pressure after data released on Wednesday showed the US job market began 2026 on firmer footing than expected, reinforcing the view that policymakers may keep rates elevated for longer.

Investors now await inflation data, due later in the day, for more cues on the Fed’s monetary policy path, with two 25-basis-point cuts currently priced in this year, the first of those expected in June. Non-yielding bullion tends to do well in low-interest-rate environments.

Elsewhere, gold flipped to a discount in India this week for the first time in a month on subdued demand as volatile prices deterred buying, while the China market saw robust demand as it heads into the Lunar New Year celebrations.

Spot silver climbed 1.5pc to $76.31 per ounce, rebounding from an 11pc drop on Thursday, though it remained on track for a weekly loss of 2.1pc.

Spot platinum added 0.9pc to $2,018.44 per ounce, while palladium rose 2.2pc to $1,652.31. Both metals were set to notch weekly losses.

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ISLAMABAD: Corporate Social Responsibility has become an integral part of modern business strategy, and that investment is not merely about economic indicators but about improving lives, creating jobs, reducing poverty, and strengthening social stability, said Board of Investment (BoI) Minister Qaiser Ahmed Sheikh on Thursday.

Speaking at the annual CSR Summit, the minister emphasised that businesses today are key partners in social progress alongside economic growth.

He underlined that investment in human resources is the key to poverty reduction and economic stability. Without strengthening education, research, and skill development, sustainable progress cannot be achieved, underscoring the continued importance of public–private partnerships for inclusive, long-term development.

He called upon investors, industrialists, and business leaders to align their investment objectives with social responsibility and expand CSR initiatives in education, healthcare, environmental protection, skill development, and community welfare.

He expressed the confidence that through strong collaboration between the government and the private sector, Pakistan can achieve sustainable, inclusive, and investment-friendly economic growth.

The BoI reaffirmed its commitment to providing maximum facilitation and guidance to investors through transparent and efficient one-window operations.

Referring to China’s journey of sustainable growth, the minister noted that over the past four decades, China lifted hundreds of millions out of poverty through long-term planning, industrial policy, technological advancement, and consistent investment in education and skills development. He stated that China’s economic transformation demonstrates that quality education, innovation, and human capital development are fundamental pillars of sustainable growth.

He said that the government was implementing comprehensive regulatory reforms and investment-friendly policies to stabilise and strengthen the national economy. Measures to enhance ease of doing business, ensure regulatory transparency, and facilitate investors are being actively pursued.

Incentives, including income tax exemptions and customs duty concessions in Special Economic Zones, are being provided to attract both local and foreign investment. He particularly highlighted the Business Facilitation Centre (BFC), which provides a single-window facilitation mechanism to investors, ensuring streamlined approvals, reduced processing time, and effective resolution of operational issues.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2026

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RAWALPINDI: The Lahore High Court’s (LHC) Rawalpindi bench has curtailed the Federal Board of Revenue’s (FBR) suo motu power to amend deemed tax assessments, ruling that Section 122(5A) of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001, cannot be used for “roving or fishing inquiries” or speculative revenue recovery.

In an income tax reference, titled Commissioner Inland Revenue versus Sajid Hussain Gondal and others, Justice Mirza Viqas Rauf and Justice Jawad Hassan laid down guidance on the scope and limits of amendment powers under Section 122, bringing long-awaited doctrinal clarity to a provision frequently invoked by tax authorities.

The reference application, filed under Section 133 of the ordinance, challenged an order of the Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue (ATIR), which had set aside an amendment made to a taxpayer’s deemed assessment for tax year 2019. The tribunal had earlier ruled that the FBR’s use of Section 122(5A) in the case was unlawful.

The taxpayer, Sajid Hussain Gondal, had filed an income tax return for 2019, which became a deemed assessment under Section 120 of the ordinance. Subsequently, the Additional Commissioner of Inland Revenue issued a show-cause notice under Sections 122(9), 111(1), and 122(5A), alleging discrepancies in declared gross revenue, purchases under Section 236A, deductions under Section 153, profit and loss expenses, and capital declarations.

The tax department claimed that these discrepancies rendered the deemed assessment erroneous and prejudicial to the interest of revenue, justifying an amendment under Section 122(5A). Despite the taxpayer’s explanation, the assessment was amended in June 2022, an action later upheld by the Commissioner (Appeals) but ultimately struck down by the ATIR in November 2023.

In a detailed ruling, the LHC reaffirmed that a deemed assessment under Section 120 cannot be unsettled lightly and drew a clear legal boundary between Section 122(5) and Section 122(5A).

It said Section 122(5) applies where an amendment is based on audit findings or definite information indicating escaped income, under-assessment, misclassification or excessive relief. By contrast, Section 122(5A) is revisional in nature and can be invoked only when the assessment order is both erroneous and prejudicial to the interest of revenue.

The bench stressed that both conditions must coexist, and that mere suspicion, arithmetic mismatch or perceived revenue loss does not meet the statutory threshold.

Justice Rauf observed that Section 122(5A) does not grant open-ended authority to revisit assessments. Rather, it is meant to correct glaring and apparent errors committed by the assessing officer where such errors are demonstrably harmful to revenue.

“The revisional jurisdiction under Section 122(5A) is not a licence for roving or fishing inquiries,” the high court held, adding that the alleged error must be evident from the record, and the claimed prejudice must be legally demonstrable, not conjectural.

Published in Dawn, February 13th, 2026

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