NBP, China UnionPay ink MoU

KARACHI: The National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China UnionPay International (CUP) to explore innovative and profitable delivery products for its customers, said a press release on Wednesday.

PSM gets Rs500m for salary payment

KARACHI: The Federal Ministry of Finance on Wednesday released Rs500 million to Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM), the second tranche of the third instalment.

The amount will be utilised for the disbursement of salary to the employees for the month of October 2014.

Earlier the PSM was released Rs1.5 billion for payment of September 2014 salary, says a press release.

BlackBerry woos keyboard loyalists

NEW YORK: BlackBerry Ltd launched its long-awaited Classic device on Wednesday, a smartphone it hopes will help it win back market share and woo those still using older versions of its physical keyboard devices.

The Waterloo, Ontario-based mobile technology said the new device, which bears a striking similarity to its once-bestselling Bold and Curve handsets, boasts a larger screen, longer battery life, expanded app library with access to the offerings from Amazon.com Inc’s Android App store, and a browser three times faster than the one on its legacy devices.

“BlackBerry Classic is the powerful communications tool that many BlackBerry Bold and Curve users have been waiting for,” Chief Executive Officer John Chen said in a statement, noting the device brings back the command bar functionalities that helped make its legacy devices easy to navigate.

When the company initially introduced its new BlackBerry 10 operating system and devices early in 2012 it put more emphasis on touchscreens, alienating many fans of its physical keyboard.

India’s SpiceJet resumes flights after fuel row

NEW DELHI: Beleaguered Indian airline SpiceJet resumed flights late Wednesday afternoon following an agreement to pay cash for fuel purchases, hours after it grounded its fleet and stranded thousands of travellers.

The no-frills airline, one of India’s leading carriers, was forced to cancel all flights after suppliers refused to refuel its planes due to unpaid bills, leaving thousands of angry passengers in the lurch at airports across the country.

“We have resumed operations. We paid in cash at some airports,” a source in the airline told AFP on condition of anonymity.

Published in Dawn December 18th , 2014