KARACHI: SITE Association of Industry has termed the massive hike in key policy rate to 20 per cent as interest bomb, making it impossible for businesses to borrow money.
President SITE Association of Industry Riaz Uddin, while rejecting exorbitant increase in policy rate, Thursday said that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) dropped the interest bomb by jacking up the policy rate to 20 per cent which will increase the KIBOR market to 22-23 per cent making it impossible for the businesses to borrow money from the banking system.
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“Besides hitting the local industry and trade, the export business will also be rendered uncompetitive whose refinance scheme is under jeopardy,” he added.
As a result of such harsh measures, there will be a total collapse in the economy which is already in a negative growth mode as against last year’s growth rate of 6 per cent, added the President SITE Association.
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Riaz Uddin further said that in addition to today’s increase in interest rates, the earlier knee-jerk actions taken by the government, on the IMF dictation such as the additional taxation measures, increase in energy rates, removal of concessionary tariff for the exporting industry and withdrawal of other subsidies have all been anti-business and anti-economic growth measures.
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At a time when inflation is already running high, hitting and breaking previous records in Pakistan, we are in the midst of a stagflation scenario which is killing the masses unbearably.
SITE Association of Industry demanded the Government and SBP not to succumb to the pressure of the foreign lenders to the detriment of our own country.
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