- Shops, markets and shopping centers will close at 9:00 p.m.
- Restaurants will be able to operate until 11:00 p.m.
- Essential services remain exempt throughout the country.
The federal government on Tuesday relaxed restrictions on business hours, citing longer daylight hours and rising temperatures during the summer season.
The decision was taken during a meeting of the Austerity Measures Implementation and Monitoring Committee, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, according to a statement issued by the MPD office.
Shops, markets, shopping centers and general retail outlets will now close at 9:00 p.m., while restaurants, cafes and canteens will be able to operate until 11:00 p.m.
Takeaway and delivery services will remain exempt from the restriction.
However, wedding halls and event venues would continue to close at 10pm, with no changes to their current hours.
Essential services, including pharmacies, hospitals, fuel stations, and IT and telecommunications-related services, remain exempt from the revised closing hours.
The committee also directed provincial governments to ensure effective implementation of the guidelines in coordination with federal authorities.
The meeting was attended by the Ministers of Petroleum, Climate Change, Information, IT and Telecommunications, as well as special assistants to the Prime Minister and the DPM.
Secretaries of Commerce, Cabinet, Petroleum and IT and Telecommunications, as well as senior officials from provincial governments, also participated.
The federal and provincial governments imposed restrictions on commercial operating hours across the country in April as part of energy conservation measures introduced in response to a sharp rise in domestic fuel prices caused by tensions in the Middle East.
The restrictions were part of a broader federal government austerity and fuel conservation strategy aimed at reducing energy consumption amid rising fuel costs.
However, last month, the measures were temporarily relaxed ahead of Eid ul Adha, which falls from May 27 to 29.
On May 18, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved an exemption from business closing hours across the country until May 31, allowing shopping malls to operate without previously imposed restrictions.
The move followed similar relaxations announced by provincial governments. In Punjab, authorities extended the relaxed operating hours of markets and shopping malls until June 1, suspending the mandatory 8pm closing requirement.
Likewise, on May 16, the Sindh government exempted markets, shopping malls, restaurants, hotels and wedding halls from fixed closing hours to facilitate economic activity and provide relief to traders and the public.
The governments of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan had also lifted restrictions on market timings and trading hours, ending energy-saving measures.
