Analysis & the brief.

In July 2026 a fatwa attributed to Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani and Darul Uloom Karachi declared trading cryptocurrency - coins, tokens and stablecoins like USDT - impermissible under Shariah, chiefly because crypto is not "wealth" (maal) in the classical sense. What the ruling says, the gharar and maysir arguments, the respected scholars who disagree, and Pakistan's parallel move to regulate virtual assets through PVARA. Educational, not a religious or financial ruling.

The FY27 budget's auto taxes, decoded - a new Federal Excise Duty on imported cars over 2,000cc (40%) and 3,000cc (41%) and on luxury imported EVs above Rs 2 crore (30-40%), a fuel carbon levy doubled to Rs 5/litre, and the concessions kept in place for locally assembled EVs, hybrids and e-bikes. Plus the scary 19.5% car levy that never actually passed.

The draft five-year auto policy promises lower tariffs, 500,000 cars a year, ~$1 billion in exports, an EV push and easier financing by 2031 - but as of June 2026 it's an unapproved draft, snagged on an IMF objection to the 1% EV tax and a tariff fight between ministries. The targets, the tariff roadmap, the used-car opening, and what it realistically means for buyers.

Every number that matters from the FY27 budget presented on 12 June 2026 - the salaried tax slab cuts, the proposed super tax reduction, Rs 3 trillion defence and Rs 1 trillion PSDP spending, the petroleum levy, and what each measure means for National Savings, mutual funds, PSX stocks, and gold.

How budgets actually move stock markets - through earnings, discount rates, and flows - and how the FY27 measures stack up on each channel. The bull case (super tax cut, infrastructure spending, fiscal consolidation), the bear case (petroleum levy inflation, an ambitious FBR target), and what history says about "sell the news".

From July 2026 the salaried tax cut lands in your account every month. Five concrete moves to invest it before lifestyle inflation absorbs it: compute your delta and pre-commit a SIP, fix your filer status, build a money-market emergency floor, lock positive real yields, and start long-term equity exposure.

The plain-English breakdown of the FY27 salaried tax cuts - old vs new rates side by side across four slabs, the abolished surcharge, and worked examples of exactly how much take-home pay you gain at Rs 2.5m, 3.5m, 5m and 7m a year. What changed, what didn't, and who benefits.

The subsidised home loan now lends up to Rs 10 million at a fixed 5% for the first 10 years. What the scheme is, who can apply, which banks offer it, the documents and procedure, why 2026 is an unusually cheap window to buy - and what owning a home means for a salaried or low-income household's investments.

The analyst's bottom-up method for valuing a Pakistani bank - grow the deposits, split them into loans and investments, work out the spread, then turn net profit into earnings per share and a P/E-based fair value. CASA, the advances-to-deposit ratio, the repricing lag, and bank tax explained, with Meezan Bank as a worked example and illustrative figures throughout.

Step-by-step guides to every major investment route in Pakistan - National Savings, mutual funds, PSX dividend stocks, T-bills, gold, halal investing, taxes, and brokerage accounts - all refreshed daily with live rates.