Pakistan Customs has successfully cleared the first consignment of mangoes bound for Moscow, Russia, under the International Transportation of Goods – TIR Convention.
(more…)Author: Mrs. Anjum Shahnawaz
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Index gains 346 points on better Afghanistan situation
KARACHI: In a significant market recovery, the benchmark KSE-100 index surged by 346 points on Tuesday, settling at 47,258, buoyed by easing tensions in neighboring Afghanistan.
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ECC approves continuation of subsidy to export sector
ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Monday approved continuation of subsidy on supply of gas and electricity to export sector.
Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin presided over the ECC meeting. The ministry of commerce gave a detailed presentation for continuation of reduced rates of electricity and RLNG to export oriented sectors.
Secretary commerce briefed the Committee that extension of concessional rates of electricity and RLNG is important for sustained increase in exports by providing energy at regionally competitive rates.
After due deliberations, the committee approved the continuation of electricity and gas subsidy for export-oriented sectors to support the momentum of growth in exports during the FY 2021-2022.
The finance minister emphasized the need to incentivize export-oriented sectors in order to take our exports to the next level. He also stressed the need to rationalize usage of energy inputs. For this purpose, the ECC constituted a sub-committee comprising Minister for Energy, Minister for Industries & Production, Advisor on Commerce, Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, Additional Secretary (CF) Finance Division and other relevant officials for presenting a plan to resolve the issue of continued use of gas by some units for power generation and non-cooperation in audit of such use.
The sub-committee was directed to present its recommendations before ECC within 30 days for further deliberation.
The ECC considered and approved a summary presented by the Power Division for extension of incremental consumption package for K-Electric industrial consumers of X-WAPDA DISCOs & K-Electric and application of incremental consumption package for BI(Non ToU) consumers of X-WAPDA DISCOs and K-Electric at the rate of Rs.12.96/kwh from 1st July 2021 to 31st December 2021.
The cabinet committee approved another summary by the Petroleum Division regarding NOC for issuance of the Parent Company Guarantees/Corporate Guarantees by each of the consortium companies, on a joint and several basis, in favour of ADNOC and SCFEA to pursue international exploration and production opportunity in Abu-Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Federal Minister for Privatization Muhammad Mian Soomro, Federal Minister for National Food Security & Research Syed Fakhar Imam, Federal Minister for Industries and Production Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, Federal Minister for Energy Muhammad Hammad Azhar, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Division Omar Ayub Khan, Adviser to the PM on Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood, Adviser to the PM on Institutional Reforms and Austerity Dr. Ishrat Hussain, SAPM on Finance and Revenue Dr. Waqar Masood, SAPM on Power & Petroleum Tabish Gauhar, Federal Secretary Finance, Secretary M/o Industries and Production, Secretary M/o NFS&R, Secretary Power, Secretary Petroleum, Chairman FBR and other senior officers participated in the meeting, Governor SBP Dr. Reza Baqir also participated through video link.
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SRB extends last date for sales tax payment, return filing
The Sindh Revenue Board (SRB) has announced an extension in the last date for payment and filing of sales tax return for the tax period of July 2021.
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Prices of kerosene oil, LDO increased for next fortnight
ISLAMABAD: The government has increased the prices of kerosene oil and Light Diesel Oil (LDO) for next fortnight effective from August 16, 2021.
The prices of kerosene oil have been increased by Rs0.81 per liter, from Rs87.49 to Rs 88.30.
Likewise, the prices of Light Diesel Oil (LDO) have been increased by Rs1.10 per liter from Rs84.67 to Rs85.77.
However, the government kept prices of petrol and diesel unchanged with effective form August 16 for next fortnight.
According to press statement issued by the Finance Ministry, the sale of petrol would continue on Rs119.80 till August 31st.
Likewise, prices of High Speed Diesel (HSD) would remain unchanged at Rs116.53 per liter.
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Meezan Bank launches second vaccination center
KARACHI: Meezan Bank Limited, in collaboration with the Sindh government and DHA Karachi, has launched second COVID-19 drive-through vaccination centre.
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FBR extends last date for payment and return filing
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has extended the last date for payment and filing of returns for the month of July 2021. The decision, communicated through a circular, offers additional time for businesses and individuals to meet their obligations, acknowledging the challenges posed by various factors, including the evolving economic landscape and ongoing global uncertainties.
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PKR stability must for economic growth: Anjum Nisar
Mian Anjum Nisar, Chairman, Businessmen Panel and former president of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has said that economic growth is not possible without stability of Pak Rupee (PKR).
In a statement issued on Saturday, he urged the government to control instability of rupee against the US dollar, as the greenback has appreciated 7.15 per cent since May this year, hitting 10 months high to cross the Rs164 mark.
FPCCI’s Businessmen Panel Chairman Mian Anjum Nisar observed that the industrial expansion and economic growth is not possible without stability of local currency, as the dollar has been appreciating against the rupee for the last more than 10 months because of the higher current account deficit and burgeoning import bills.
FPCCI former president observed that the market-based flexible exchange rate system, resilience in remittances and other factors can help contain the current account deficit in a sustainable range of 2-3 percent of GDP in FY22.
He said that the rising of dollar is not logical despite the fact that the State Bank says Pakistan’s external position was at its strongest in 10 years with 0.6 per cent current account deficit in FY21.
Since the May this year, the dollar has been appreciated by 7.15 per cent against the local currency which lifted the cost of imported products and created uncertainty about the exchange rate stability.
The dollar was at Rs164 in October 2020 and now again hovering in the range of Rs164 in Aug 2021.
Since the beginning of the new financial year the exchange rate looked a shaky as the local currency lost almost 4 per cent against the US dollar. The market reacted over the policy-makers’ announcement about 2-3 per cent current account deficit, while the importers rushed for higher amount.
He said that trade and industry have no idea as to what is the real exchange rate needed by the central bank and which is the end point for depreciation of rupee. Though the exporters would get some benefit against their export proceeds but the overall economy would face a tough time as the cost has been rising and finally it would affect consumption, which is the main wheel to run the economy.
Although the central banks’ foreign exchange reserves are in a better shape, but it has to rely heavily on borrowing to keep it at around $18 billion which affects the local currency value negatively.
He said that Pakistan has received record $29.4 billion remittances in fiscal year 2020-21 and it again received $2.7 billion in July FY22, indicating that the new financial year would also get help larger than the entire exports of the country, which is not long-term solution.
Besides increasing exports and controlling imports the government will have to take administrative measures, as a large demand of cash dollars are seen in the market. Mian Mian Anjum Nisar appreciated the positive development related to economic indicators, urging the government to control volatility of rupee against the US dollar, showing that exchange rate is not managed by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) but it also indicates the exchange rate is not stable.
He said that the end of previous fiscal year with rising current account deficit was a serious blow to the exchange rate while the fear of higher demand of dollars further exacerbated with the information of the SBP that the county would need $20 billion to repay loans.
Nisar said that the import bill of $6 billion in June this year was enough to signal the market that demand of dollar was very high. He said that the rising instability in Afghanistan has stirred fear within Pakistan that may hurt the normal economic life in the country, motivating people to buy dollars. At the same time, exports to Afghanistan have come down to almost zero level.
Formal and informal exports to the country are in the range of $1.5 billion to $2 billion per year. Mian Anjum said that the fourth wave of Covid-19 is another negative force to depreciate the local currency and shatter the confidence.
Terming rupee depreciation against dollar a mysterious development, he said that continued fall of rupee is not understandable with the fact that there was no fundamental change in the country’s economic indicators.
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Weekly Review: positive sentiments likely to prevail
KARACHI: The stock market may witnessed positive sentiments next week on expectation of strong results. However, concerns over COVID-19 fourth may keep the sentiment skittish, said analysts at Arif Habib Limited.
Furthermore, prevailing tension in Afghanistan with continuing withdrawal of US army by end of this month may exert pressure on the local bourse.
The benchmark KSE-100 index of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) is currently trading at a PER of 6.6x (2021) compared to Asia Pac regional average of 16.0x while offering a dividend yield of 6.6 per cent versus 2.4 per cent offered by the region.
The market commenced on a negative note given mounting concerns over current account. Moreover, recent depreciation of Pak Rupee against USD (closing at PKR 164) kept the momentum weak.
During the week, the market bounced back and cushioned the dip amid robust financial results of some scrips, massive incentives approved by Federal Govt. for technology and telecom sector, robust remittances (USD 2.7 billion in July 2021) and 114 per cent YoY surge in automobile sales in July 2021.
Albeit, the KSE-100 closed at 47,170 points, shedding 320 points (down by 0.7 per cent) WoW.
Sector-wise negative contributions came from i) Cement (112 points), ii) Oil & Gas Marketing Companies (67 points), iii) Oil & Gas Exploration (52 points), iv) Power Generation & Distribution (41 points) and v) Fertilizer (39 points).
Whereas, the sectors that contributed positively included i) Technology & Communication (47 points) and ii) Food & Personal Care Products (37 points). Scrip-wise negative contributors were LUCK (43 points), PPL (32 points), HUBC (32 points), PSO (32 points) and OGDC (31 points). Meanwhile, scrip-wise positive contribution came from TRG (83 points), MEBL (46 points), and FCEPL (44 points).
Foreign buying continued this week, clocking at USD 4.0 million against a net buy of USD 3.1 million last week. Buying was witnessed in Technology (USD 4.2 million), Banks (USD 0.9 million) and Fertilizer (USD 0.3 million). On the domestic front, major selling was reported by Insurance (USD 6.6 million) and Individuals (USD 3.0 million). Average volumes clocked-in at 307 million shares (down by 33 per cent WoW) while average value traded settled at USD 73 million (down by 14 per cent WoW).
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NCCPL informs about amended CGT rates to investors
KARACHI: National Clearing Company of Pakistan (NCCPL) on Thursday shared updated capital gain tax (CGT) rates that are applicable from July 01, 2021.
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