Traders give SBP chief hell for curbing imports

Traders declared open season on State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad on Wednesday, hurling barbs that sometimes bordered on outright insults for imposing import restrictions. Members of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) spared little mercy for the central bank chief in a town-hall meeting for letting 5,700 containers laden with food, medicine and industrial raw materials waste away at port for months on end. Banks are refusing to open letters of credit (LCs) for a majority of imports under explicit directives from the SBP as the country fights a serious shortage of dollars. Minimising dollar outflows has brought a wide section of import-dependent industrial activity to a standstill across the country. Based on K-Electric billings, power consumption by Karachi-based factories has gone down by 30-35 per cent in recent months, which reflects declining industrial activity, according to the KCCI leadership. In a visual demonstration of the closure of industry, one over-enthusiastic KCCI representative handed the SBP governor a giant key in a velvet box. Visibly embarrassed, Mr Ahmad squirmed in his seat and refused to accept it without making eye contact with the KCCI representative.