Business

IMF to ‘remain engaged’ with Pakistan despite political tumult

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

“Pakistan authorities have committed not to introduce fuel cross-subsidy,” IMF says.
Fund says it sees no indication that Pakistan wants to pause negotiations.
Political crisis in the wake of Imran Khan’s arrest have sparked concerns about IMF programme.

Amid speculations that Pakistan’s chances of clinching a long-suspended International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout have been reduced due to the political situation, the lender clarified that it “remains engaged” with Islamabad, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

Declining to comment on the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan, the spokesperson of the global lender said: “IMF remains engaged with Pakistan on securing funding and policy assurances with the goal of reaching an agreement on the ninth review of the $6.7 billion loan agreed in 2019.”

“The IMF sees no indication that Pakistan wants to pause negotiations on disbursement from the current programme,” the spokesperson told the foreign publication.

Following the arrest of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman, concerns sparked that Pakistan was edging closer to a default as political unrest will delay an IMF bailout.

“It looks increasingly difficult for Pakistan to avoid a default in the absence of fresh funding support coming in,” said Eng Tat Low, an emerging-market sovereign analyst at Columbia Threadneedle Investments in Singapore.

“I am also growing more skeptical whether an IMF deal is going to come through. Their heavy debt amortisation against precarious reserves would suggest default is imminent,” he added.

Violent protests erupted in Pakistan on Tuesday with dozens injured across several cities and demonstrators attacking military buildings after Khan was arrested. Moreover, the police initiated a crackdown and arrested the top leadership of the party along with thousands of workers.

The rupee slumped to a record low and slid over 3% a dollar on Thursday. Dollar bonds due 2031 fell to the lowest since November and were indicated at 33.10 cents on the dollar.

‘No petrol subsidy’

Moreover, the Fund also revealed that Pakistani authorities have committed to the lender that petrol subsidy would not be introduced.

“Pakistan authorities have committed not to introduce fuel cross-subsidy scheme in F23 [fiscal year 2022-23] and beyond,” the spokesperson said.

The statement comes as a surprise as Minister of State for Petroleum Dr Musadik Malik, on Tuesday, said that Pakistan aims to address IMF’s concerns before implementing its new fuel subsidy plan.

“The IMF had some reservations about the government’s plan to raise fuel prices for wealthier motorists to finance a subsidy for lower-income people”, he said on Bloomberg TV in an interview.

Malik said: “We originally thought that it was a much simpler idea. We want to make sure now that if we move forward, we take care of their concerns and make sure that they completely understand what we are trying to do and why.”

However, the Washington-based lender has now said that Pakistan has already committed to the Fund that it would not introduce the subsidy.

Business

An investigation was “launched” into PTA’s inability to get Rs. 78 billion back from Telcos

Published

17 hours ago

Farwa

The PTA has reportedly been instructed to reply to NAB by July 29. According to the enquiry, the national exchequer has suffered losses as a result of the delay in collecting dues.

The PTA has been asked to provide NAB with information about any pertinent records, court proceedings, and overdue bills. The NAB Karachi has summoned the PTA officials to appear with all pertinent documentation.

All of the principle sum has to be paid by the LDI firms, according to sources. But due to judicial stay orders, the collection of dues has been impeded.

These sources further state that a steering group has been established by the Ministry of IT to supervise the issue of dues recovery.

In a previous event, the tariffs levied on importing cell phones from outside were clarified by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

Contrary to what some internet reports claim, PTA clarified in response to recent news regarding the tariffs on mobile phone imports that there hasn’t been a formal decision to remove these levies in Pakistan.

the PTA.Pakistanis living abroad will be the only ones free from these levies, according to the PTA. A SIM card can be inserted and the phone restarted to temporarily register a device for non-PTA mobile subscribers.

Business

Weekly inflation in Pakistan increased by 0.17 percent.

Published

18 hours ago

Farwa

The SPI for the week under review in the aforementioned group was reported at 321.95 points, as opposed to 321.40 points during the previous week, according to the PBS statistics.

The SPI for the combined consumption group saw a 20.09 percent increase in the week under review compared to the same week the previous year.

The weekly SPI includes 51 necessary items for every spending group and 17 urban areas, with a base year of 2015–16 = 100.

The SPI for the lowest consumption category, which is up to Rs 17,732, grew by 0.08 percent from 311.97 points to 312.22 points this past week.

0.18 percent,The index of consumption for the lowest consumption groups, which are Rs 17,732-22,888, Rs 22,889-29,517, Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175; increased by 0.13 percent, 0.15 percent, 0.18 and 0.19 percent, respectively.

Nineteen (37.25%) of the fifty-one commodities had price increases over the week, eight (15.69%) had price decreases, and twenty-four (47.06%) had unchanged pricing.

On a weekly basis, the following commodities saw significant price decreases: tomatoes (9.19%), onions (2.14%), LPG (1.04%), bananas (0.53%), wheat flour (0.35%), potatoes (0.17%), pulse masoor (0.16%), and bread (0.05%).

Chicken (4.80%), garlic (2.01%), pulse gramme (1.87%), eggs (1.71%), beef (0.93%), gur (0.89%), pulse moong (0.84%), fresh milk (0.45%), firewood (0.23%), and cigarettes (0.12%) were among the items whose average prices increased significantly week over week.

The commodities that saw a year-over-year decline were: wheat flour (31.75%); cooking oil (13.44%); vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (10.42%); vegetable ghee 1 kg (9.85%); mustard oil (8.33%); eggs (5.82%); rice basmati broken (4.15%); and tea package (2.52%).

Gas prices for Q1 (570.00%), onions (96.01%), pulse gramme (40.39%), powered milk (39.11%), garlic (34.61%), pulse moong (29.77%), men’s sandals (25.01%), beef (23.52%), salt powder (23.28%), pulse mash (22.50%), and energy saver (17.96%) were among the commodities whose average prices increased year over year.

Business

The price of gold has drastically dropped in Pakistan.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

As per the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA), the cost of 24-karat gold per tola decreased by Rs 2,300, standing at Rs 250,500.

A kilogramme of 24-karat gold costing Rs1,972 less at the local market, making it worth Rs2114,763. Ten grammes of 22-karat gold had a price decrease to Rs196,866 as well.

After losing a significant $43 during the day, the rate per ounce of gold on the international market also decreased. It currently stands at $2,370.

On Thursday, the price of 24-karat silver also experienced a decline, falling by Rs60 to settle at Rs2,860 petal.