KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Tuesday issued the Karachi Interbank Offered Rates (KIBOR) as of March 22, 2022.
Following are the latest KIBOR rates:
| Tenor | BID | OFFER |
| 1 – Week | 9.82 | 10.32 |
| 2 – Week | 9.91 | 10.41 |
| 1 – Month | 10.34 | 10.84 |
| 3 – Month | 11.35 | 11.60 |
| 6 – Month | 11.85 | 12.10 |
| 9 – Month | 11.87 | 12.37 |
| 1 – Year | 11.95 | 12.45 |
KARACHI: Pakistan stocks witnessed a range bound trading activity on Tuesday due to fall in rupee value and political unrest in the country.
The benchmark KSE-100 index of Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) closed at 43,204 points from previous day’s closing of 43,230 points, down by 26 points.
READ MORE: Pakistan stocks up 200 points on Reko Diq deal renewal
Analysts at Arif Habib Limited said that range bound session was observed today due to political unrest and Pak Rupee (PKR) devaluation against dollar.
The market opened in the green zone but stayed volatile throughout the day. Main board activity remained dull.
On the flip-side, activity continued to remain side-ways as market witnessed hefty volumes in the 3rd tier stocks.
READ MORE: Weekly Review: political unrest to keep stocks under pressure
In the last trading hour, profit taking was witnessed which led the index to close in the red zone.
Analysts at Topline Securities said that Pakistan equities carried forward yesterday buying momentum where investors opted to invest funds in blue chip stocks having attractive dividend yield. Initially, oil stocks led the show where recent rally in global oil prices brought them again into investors’ radar.
READ MORE: Pakistan stocks plunge 777 points on rupee devaluation
Sectors contributing to the performance include Banks (-36.2 points), E&P (-25.1 points), Cements (-18.9 points), and Automobile Parts (-12.0 points).
Volumes increased from 124.9 million shares to 138.3 million shares (+10.7 per cent DoD). Average traded value also increased by 27.2 per cent to reach US$ 27.5 million as against US$ 21.7 million.
Stocks that contributed significantly to the volumes include TREET, TPLP, PAELR3, SMBL and TELE.
READ MORE: Equities slip by 168 points in range bound trading
KARACHI, March 22, 2022 – The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has disclosed the exchange rates for Tuesday, March 22, 2022. These rates are established on the weighted average rates of commercial banks and are presented for informational purposes only, as stated by the SBP.
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KARACHI: Dr. Muhammad Ashfaq Ahmed, chairman, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Tuesday said reduction in income tax slabs may be considered.
Addressing the business community at Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) said that existing income tax slabs were implemented after due consideration.
Earlier, the business community pointed out high number of tax slabs in the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.
READ MORE: Withholding tax should be on income: FBR Chairman
Commenting on requirement of Computerized National Identity Card (CNIC) on transactions, he said this condition was introduced three years ago. The FBR has gathered bulk of information due to this condition. Further, many cases of using fake CNICs for making transactions were also reported, he added.
The FBR chairman said that retailers had positively responded to integration of Point of Sales (POS) in Karachi. “Many issues will be resolved with improvement in supply chain,” he added.
The business community raised the issues of audit notices. Dr. Ashfaq said that action would be taken if audit notices were not responded. “The audit notices should be responded with documentary evidence,” he said.
READ MORE: UAE favorite hiding for Pakistan assets: Dr. Ashfaq
About the tax laws, he said that foreign companies investment in Pakistan are unaware about our domestic laws, he said and assured that the FBR would facilitate both local and foreign investors to understand tax laws.
Earlier, Anjum Nisar, Chairman, Businessmen Panel (BMP) said that delay in tax refunds create liquidity issues for industries. He said if taxpayers delays in compliance then he is subject to penalty and surcharges. Similarly, this should be apply to tax officials, he added.
Irfan Iqbal Sheikh, President FPCCI, put forward the concerns and complaints of the business, industry and trade community of Pakistan to the Federal Board of Revenue during the detailed visit of its Chairman, Dr. Ashfaq Ahmed; along with the top brass of FBR.
READ MORE: FBR explains cash discount under sales tax laws
FPCCI President said that excessive and unsubstantiated tax notices; maladministration and corrupt elements; requirement of buyers’ CNIC copy; huge backlog of refund cases; double taxation; misuse of erstwhile FATA & PATA exemptions; higher rates of corporate, sales and withholding taxes; mandatory POS integration with FBR; multiplicity of income tax slabs and SRO culture are the major impediments in reforming the taxation system and broadening of the tax base.
Irfan Iqbal Sheikh added that 29 percent corporate tax and 17 percent sales tax are too high for economic growth, industrialization and employment generation; and, rates of these taxes should be gradually and progressively brought down. He elaborated that no country of the world has ever progressed in the absence of industrialization; while commending the recently announced industrial growth package of the federal government.
READ MORE: FBR amends fresh property valuations for Islamabad
Engr. M.A. Jabbar, VP FPCCI, emphasized that we have to do away with the notice manufacturing practices of the taxation machinery as that prohibits the new taxpayers to register themselves into the system to avoid unnecessary regulatory interferences.
Dr. Ashfaq Ahmed, Chairman FBR, expressed his willingness to have policy deliberations over FPCCI’s demand of reducing audit period to three years from the current six years. He also apprised the session that FBR has performed exceedingly well despite the debilitating economic conditions arising out of COVID-19 pandemic and have collected record taxes. He also expressed his optimism that FBR can soon achieve a Tax-to-GDP ratio of 12 per cent.
KARACHI: The losing streak of Pakistan Rupee (PKR) against dollar for the seventh consecutive session on Tuesday as the foreign currency hit another high of Rs181.73 in the interbank foreign exchange market.
In today’s trading the rupee fell 48 paisas against the dollar from previous day’s closing of Rs181.25 in the interbank foreign exchange market.
READ MORE: Rupee collapses to dollar at record low Rs181.25
The local currency depreciated by Rs3.22 or 1.80 per cent during the past seven trading sessions.
Currency experts said political uncertainty, current account deficit and trade deficit put pressure on the rupee value.
They said that a no-confidence motion moved against the prime minister by the opposition parties had resulted in negative sentiments in the market.
READ MORE: Dollar continues to make historic high; hits Rs180.57
The dollar demand was also rising due to import of commodities related to the holy month of Ramzan.
The local forex market is also uncertain due to volatile oil prices in the international markets.
Further, the external payments, foreign exchange reserves declined and it pushed the rupee to fall sharply.
READ MORE: Dollar climbs new peak PKR 180.07 at interbank closing
The foreign exchange reserves of the country fell by $386 million to $22.283 billion by the week ended March 11, 2022 as against $22.669 billion a week ago. The official reserves of the State Bank fell by $381 million to $15.831 billion by the week ended March 11, 2022 as compared with $16.212 billion a week ago.
READ MORE: Dollar advances to fresh high at Rs179.44
The country spent $11.69 billion for the import of petroleum products during the first seven months (July – February) 2021/2022 as compared with $5.64 billion in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year, showing an increase of 107 per cent.
KARACHI: The exchange rate of Bitcoin (BTC) in Pak Rupee (PKR) is Rs7,766,888.94 on March 22, 2022, in the open exchange market. The rate of Bitcoin has been calculated and compared with the rate Rs7,377,908.02 on March 21, 2022.
The rate of Bitcoin in US Dollar (USD) is $42,851.80 on March 22, 2022 in the open exchange market. The rate of Bitcoin has been calculated and compared with the rate $40,902.36 on March 21, 2022.
Disclaimer: All data and information is provided for informational purposes only. The data has not been provided for trading purposes or financial, investment, tax, legal, accounting, or other advice. In the case of trading, it is advised to consult your broker or financial representative to verify pricing before executing any trade. The exchange rate does not constitute investment advice. Further, it is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security or financial product.
KARACHI: The exchange rate of Ripple (XRP) in Pak Rupee (PKR) is Rs153.79 on March 22, 2022, in the open exchange market. The rate of Ripple has been calculated and compared with the rate Rs145.56 on March 21, 2022.
The rate of Ripple in US Dollar (USD) is $0.85 on March 22, 2022, in the open exchange market. The rate of Ripple has been calculated and compared with the rate of $0.81 on March 21, 2022.
Disclaimer: All data and information are provided for informational purposes only. The data has not been provided for trading purposes or financial, investment, tax, legal, accounting, or other advice. In the case of trading, it is advised to consult your broker or financial representative to verify pricing before executing any trade. The exchange rate does not constitute investment advice. Further, it is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security or financial product.
KARACHI: The exchange rate of Dogecoin (DOGE) in Pak Rupee (PKR) is Rs22.45 on March 22, 2022, in the open exchange market. The rate of Dogecoin has been calculated and compared with the rate Rs21.63 on March 21, 2022.
The rate of Dogecoin in US Dollar (USD) is $0.12 on March 22, 2022, in the open exchange market. The rate of Dogecoin has been calculated and compared with the rate $0.12 on March 21, 2022.
Disclaimer: All data and information are provided for informational purposes only. The data has not been provided for trading purposes or financial, investment, tax, legal, accounting, or other advice. In the case of trading, it is advised to consult your broker or financial representative to verify pricing before executing any trade. The exchange rate does not constitute investment advice. Further, it is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security or financial product.
KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Monday March 21, 2022, launched challenge fund for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to support innovative solutions for SME banking in the country.
The central bank through a circular issued procedure for the challenge fund for SMEs (CFS).
This fund in form of grant will facilitate banks in developing innovative technological solutions to cater the banking needs of SME sector.
READ MORE: Meezan Bank starts Islamic financing scheme for SMEs
This will also enable to increase the access and usage of digital financial services by SME sector.
The scope of CFS will focus, however, it will not be limited to the following areas:
i. Developing SME banking solutions
ii. Developing digital payment solutions for SMEs
iii. Developing E-Commerce / market place
iv. Digitizing loans application and credit management
READ MORE: Computation of income tax on profit and gains for SMEs
The SBP said that commercial banks (conventional & Islamic) are eligible to apply for grant under CFS. Banks can also apply in partnership with Non-banking financial Institutions (NBFIs), Fintechs, Electronic Money Institutions (EMI) and software houses. However, lead responsibility will rest with the applicant bank.
The SBP said that grant size will be determined according to the financing requirements of the proposal under consideration. However, each grantee will contribute 15 per cent of the total cost. Depending upon the quality and innovations of proposal, the grant size can vary, however one bank will get only one grant. The duration of the projects to be implemented through CFS grant should not exceed 8 months.
SBP invites interest of banks through Expression of interest (EOI) placed at Annexure A for availing grant under CFS to improve their SME financing portfolio. Banks proposals will be evaluated as per technical criteria developed by SBP.
Banks are encouraged to apply as per EOI on prescribed format placed at Annexure-B to SBP latest by April 18, 2022.
The Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar (MPMG) housing scheme received an astounding response during a two-day event in Faisalabad, where banks granted conditional approvals for housing loans totaling approximately Rs7.4 billion.
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