Business

Pakistan finally reaches staff-level agreement with IMF: Bloomberg

Published

3 years ago

Farwa

Sources say an official announcement in this regard is expected soon.
Staff-level agreement will pave way for $1.2b disbursement, which is expected in August.
Disbursal would offer relief to Islamabad as country’s foreign-exchange reserves are depleting.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the executive board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Wednesday reached a staff-level agreement that revived the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme for the country, Bloomberg reported.

The move comes after the coalition government adhered to all “tough” conditions set by the global lender, including an increase in the price of petroleum products and energy tariffs, among others.

Sources told Geo.tv that the official announcement in this regard is expected soon.

The staff-level agreement will pave way for a $1.2 billion disbursement, which is expected in August.

Bloomberg reported that the disbursal would offer relief to Islamabad as the country’s foreign-exchange reserves are depleting so much so that they can only cover less than two months of imports.

In June, Pakistan and the Fund staff achieved substantial progress to strike a consensus on budget 2022-23 after which the IMF shared a draft Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP).

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on June 28 announced that Pakistan had received the MEFP from the IMF for the combined seventh and eighth reviews.

The IMF in June 2019 approved a three-year, $6 billion loan “to support Pakistan’s economic plan, aimed at returning “sustainable growth to the country’s economy and improving the standards of living”.

Business

PEL Ships Transformers to Start US Exports

Published

18 hours ago

Bilal

Through stable and efficient trade regulations, the Special Investment Facilitation Council has helped promote Pakistani industrial exports internationally.

With the first shipment of transformers departing Pakistan for the United States on March 13, 2025, Pak Electron Limited formally started exporting its goods to the United States.

PEL wants to increase its worldwide visibility and investigate new overseas prospects. Under its power and appliances segment, the company produces high-quality goods like transformers and home appliances.

Additionally, PEL has alliances with major global corporations including General Electric, Mitsubishi, and Hitachi.

Business

The FBR has extended the deadline for sales tax returns until March 27.

Published

19 hours ago

Bilal

The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) extended the deadline for submitting Sales Tax and Federal Excise reports to March 27, 2025, to assist taxpayers.

The FBR has issued an official notification concerning the prolongation, as per reports.

The initial deadline for submitting Sales Tax and Federal Excise reports for the February 2025 tax period, originally set for March 18, 2025, has been extended to March 27, 2025.

The determination has been rendered pursuant to Section 74 of the Sales Tax Act 1990 and Section 43 of the Federal Excise Act 2005.

FBR officials indicated that the extension is intended to alleviate challenges encountered by taxpayers, permitting them to complete their returns within the specified timeframe without inconvenience.

Taxpayers are encouraged to utilize the extended deadline and submit their returns punctually to evade any possible fines.

The FBR regularly extends tax return deadlines to assist the corporate sector and facilitate seamless tax compliance.

Business

Stocks fall as PSX is under selling pressure.

Published

2 days ago

Bilal

The benchmark KSE-100 Index dropped more than 600 points during Monday’s opening trading hours, sending the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) plunging.

The benchmark index had dropped 635 points and was now trading at 117,806.25.

The PSX’s decline was attributed primarily to selling pressure.

Important industries include fertilizer, auto assemblers, refineries, OMCs, and oil and gas exploration firms. Due to widespread selling, index-heavy stocks such as EFERT, INDU, MARI, OGDC, PPL, and PSO saw negative trading.

Remember that throughout the past week, the PSX has been in a bullish trend, reaching historical highs.

This prolonged increase was fueled by hope for a possible staff-level deal for the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) $1 billion second EFF tranche.