CITING a better-than-anticipated decline in May’s inflation figures, the State Bank ceded to rate cut demands on Monday, by slashing its policy rate by 150bps to 20.5pc, after having held it steady at a record 22pc for nearly a year. The bank also mentioned the uptick in economic activity, and improvements in the external sector outlook and international reserves, resulting from a lower current
GIVEN the current economic crisis, all analysts and pundits expect a contractionary budget. The question does not appear to be whether taxes will be increased; but rather, to what extent and for which sectors. In March, Pakistan’s large-scale manufacturing industries decreased by 9.35 per cent, a third consecutive month of declines. Recent years of pandemic, floods, political instability at
The policy rate cut of 150 basis points by the State Bank on Monday disappointed most of the industrialists as they expected that a much bigger cut would bring the interest rate down to 15 per cent. Atif Ikram Sheikh, the FPCCI president, said the interest rate should come down to 15 per cent to enable Pakistani exporters to compete in the regional and international export markets by reducing t
Under pressure from millers, the government allowed the export of 150,000 tonnes of sugar on Monday despite the high domestic retail prices hovering around Rs160 per kg. The decision came just two days before the national budget at the behest of sugar mill owners demanding to export their surplus production. These millers are part of the Pakistan Muslim League-N coalition government. This wi
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the federal cabinet today (Tuesday) to review the upcoming federal budget, which is expected to be tabled before the National Assembly tomorrow (Wednesday). The huddle will also provide the PM an opportunity to take his aides into confidence over decisions made during his recent visit to China, a source in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO