Business

SBP’s Monetary Policy Committee to meet on Nov 25

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

The State Bank of Pakistan will announce its new monetary policy on November 25.
The Monetary Policy Committee will meet on Friday at SBP Karachi.
Last month, the SBP decided to leave its key interest rate unchanged at 15% for the next seven weeks.

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will announce its new monetary policy after a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Friday.

In a statement, the central bank says, “The Monetary Policy Committee of SBP will meet on November 25 at SBP Karachi to decide about the Monetary Policy. Later on, SBP will issue the Monetary Policy Statement through a press release on the same day.”

SBP leaves interest rate unchanged

Last month, the SBP had decided to leave its key interest rate unchanged at 15% for the next seven weeks.

“The committee was of the view that based on currently available information, the existing monetary policy stance strikes an appropriate balance between managing inflation and maintaining growth in the wake of the floods,” the central bank in a thread shared on Twitter.

The MPC meeting was the first after the start of SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar assumed charge.

The decision to maintain a status quo was in line with Dar’s old recipe of running a controlled economy, under which he would like to have an easy monetary policy.

The SBP hds increased the rate by a cumulative 800 basis points in 11 months (September 2021 to July 2022) to 15%.

The interest rate and flexible rupee-dollar parity are the two major tools available to central banks all over the world to control inflation readings and give direction to the economic trajectory in their respective countries.

Monetary and inflation outlook

The MPC stated that in line with slowing economic activity, private sector credit has seen a net retirement of Rs 0.7 billion so far this fiscal year, compared to an expansion of Rs 62.6 billion during the same period last year.

“This decline in credit mainly reflects a retirement of working capital loans and a sharp fall in consumer finance,” the statement read.

The SBP said that looking ahead, the supply shock to food prices from the floods is expected to put additional pressure on headline inflation in the coming months.

Nevertheless, headline inflation is still projected to gradually decline through the rest of the fiscal year, particularly in the second half.

Thereafter, it should fall towards the upper range of the 5-7% medium-term target by the end of the fiscal year 2023-24.

A continuation of prudent monetary policy and orderly movements in the rupee should help contain core inflation going forward. At the same time, curbing food inflation through administrative measures to resolve supply-chain bottlenecks and any necessary imports should be a high priority, the central bank noted.

In line with the above-mentioned factors, the MPC will continue to carefully monitor developments affecting medium-term prospects for inflation, financial stability, and growth.

Business

PSX surpasses the historical 71,500-point threshold.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Investors celebrated as the PSX finally crossed the historic 71,500 point threshold, signalling a critical turning point in the state of the economy in the country.

The KSE-100 index jumped more than 740 points, soaring to a record high of 71,650 points, demonstrating the tenacity and optimism that pervaded the Pakistani financial market.

This outstanding accomplishment indicates strong growth possibilities for the foreseeable future and demonstrates investors’ faith in the nation’s economic prospects.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX)’s KSE-100 index saw a minor decline of 60.92 points on Friday, or 0.09 percent, and ended the day at 70,483.66 points.

In the foreign exchange market, the US dollar lost value in relation to the Pakistani rupee at the same time.

Currency dealers claim that on the first day of the workweek, the value of the US dollar dropped by 11 paisas to Rs278.20 in the interbank market, significantly strengthening the rupee.

Business

Outsourcing: Investors from Turkey stop by the airport in Karachi

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Turkish investors, who are interested in outsourcing Pakistan’s airport industry, sent a high-level team to Karachi Airport.

The domestic arrival and departure lounge at Karachi airport was visited by the Turkish investment group, according to information. The investors were briefed about the workings of the Karachi airport by a delegation of the Civil Aviation Authority, headed by Secretary Aviation Saif Anjum.

An update on the volume of people and business leaving the airport was also provided to Turkish investors. It is anticipated that the delegation would tour the cargo terminal and CAA headquarters today.

The nation’s three main airports, Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, were formerly to be outsourced by the federal government.

Interest in outsourcing three of Pakistan’s airports has been expressed by local parties as well as investors from Germany, France, the Netherlands, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, and Turkiye.

The timeframe for proposal submission for Islamabad International Airport’s outsourcing was extended by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) earlier on March 21.

The government’s top objective in the process of outsourcing international airports, according to Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, is openness.

First, he stated that Pakistan is willing to participate in a public-private partnership to outsource a portion of the airport’s commercial activities.

Business

The inaugural flight of Azerbaijan Airlines is between Baku and Karachi.

Published

5 days ago

Farwa

The national airline of Azerbaijan launched direct flights from Baku to Karachi today. There will be two weekly flights on this route, on Thursdays and Sundays.

The first flight will land in Karachi, and Azerbaijan’s ambassador, Khazar Farhadov, will be there to greet it.

This evening also marks the departure of the inaugural flight from Karachi to Baku, in addition to the arrival of the flight from Baku.

Azerbaijan Airlines said last month that it would be growing its network and flight operations in Pakistan.

Aviation insiders have verified that Azerbaijan Airlines is preparing to launch service to Karachi in the coming month of April.

In addition to its current services in Islamabad and Lahore, the airline plans to launch its Karachi route on April 18, with the inaugural flight anticipated to depart on that date.

Azerbaijan Airlines has been given permission to operate flights on the Karachi route, according to sources within the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Following a bilateral agreement between the two nations, Azerbaijan Airlines has been given permission to extend its operations in Pakistan.