Pakistan Daily Economy Update - 19 December

Transcription

1. Dec . 19, 2017 KCCI - eBulletin Country mulls using Yuan in trade with China Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has said that Pakistan is looking for the possibility of replacing dollar with Yuan in cross-border trade with China. At a launching ceremony of Long Term Plan (LTP) of CPEC 2017-2030, Planning Minister has said that within Pakistan, rupee will be currency for the local trade but China wants to use Renminbi (RMB) or Yuan, instead of dollar, in bilateral trade between both the countries which is being examined. CPEC projects are broadly divided in three phases starting from the Short Term Plan which is effective till 2020, Medium Term Plan that will cover the projects till 2025 and Long Term Plan which is valid until 2030. The Nation. USD-Interbank USD-Open MKT KSE-100 index FIPI CPEC LTP envisages greater cooperation between SBP, PBoC In the official launch of Long-Term Plan for CPEC (2017-2030), the key cooperation areas that were discussed include promoting monetary cooperation between central banks, implementing existing bilateral currency swap arrangements, exploring use of bilateral currencies for the settlement of bilateral trade/investments, Cross-Border Inter-Bank Payment System, promoting free flow of capital, financial cooperation between Free Trade Zones and strengthening cooperation between stock exchanges of Pakistan and China. BR. Crude (FE'18) Gold (JA'18) Gold (10g) Local Silver (JA'18) Cotton(KHI)-40 kg Kibor-6M First quarter fiscal year 2018: over $ 2Bn spent on external debt servicing The country's total external debt servicing exceeded $ 2Bn mark during 1QFY18 standing at $ 2.09Bn. Total external debt and servicing includes $ 1.711Bn of principal and $ 383Mn of interest payment. On principal side, external debt servicing under public debt stood at $ 904Mn. Debt servicing on account of interest includes $ 31Mn to the IMF, $ 8Mn to Paris Club and $ 90Mn of multilaterals. BR. PM to share economic plan with businessmen soon In a meeting with the business community in Islamabad, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi will share the govt.'s 10-year economic plan/vision with the business community within a few days. On the occasion, Special Revenue Assistant, Haroon Akhtar, also made commitment to abolish RD on Afghanistan imports whereas RD on other items, especially on raw material, would be reviewed in consultation with other stakeholders. However, commerce ministry is of the view that regulatory duty on Afghan products would not be withdrawn until Kabul agrees to hold meeting of APTTCA to discuss trade related issues. The businessmen community requested the prime minister to fix power tariff for export-oriented industry at PKR 9/unit. BR. Number of companies, associations filing tax returns declines Amid claims by FBR of having registered over 70% revenue growth during the four years, the number of individuals, association of persons (AoPs) and companies contributing not a single penny to the national exchequer is also increasing every year, FBR has shown an impressive 19% revenue growth in the current year and the number of income tax return filers had also risen to 1.2Mn as per figures of TY16, the number of filers for the current year had declined to 1.07Mn with a majority of them not contributing any tax in all categories. The News. Govt to eliminate oil-based power plants in near future: PM Abbasi PM Abbasi has said that the country will completely phase out furnace oil-based power generation in near future to mitigate oil’s negative fallout on climate. Government has already banned new power plants based on furnace oil in the wake of a growing import of comparatively inexpensive LNG. The country has currently two LNG terminals with a production capacity of 1.2Bn cubic feet/day, which is quite a relief for the country facing a gas shortfall of around two billion cubic feet/day. Prime Minister said the country is already using Euro-II diesel and petrol. The News. Gwadar Port will be fully operational next month: minister Minister for port and shipping has said that Gwadar port will start its full commercial operation from next month as all the development works have been completed. The News. \ Economic Indicators Pakistan needs $ 32Bn to fund external account next year Experts believe that Pakistan’s fragile economy will need a whopping $ 32Bn over the next 12 to 18 months to fund its external account requirements. Pakistan can either to go back to the IMF for facing tough economic and noneconomic conditions including strangulating the CPEC or evolve consensus among all political parties for undertaking the path of self-reliance. The News. List of Indicators Date / Period Unit Value Change Daily 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec 18-Dec PKR PKR Pts. $ Mn $/bbl $/oz PKR $/oz PKR % 110.49 110.25 38,384 9.64 57.22 1,262.7 46,628 16.09 7,502 6.21% 0.05% 0.18% -0.68% NM** -0.19% 0.45% 0.00% 0.44% 0.73% 0.01% WoW 10.36% YoY 1.29% 10.49% 21.12% -28.56% -121.91% 57.12% Forex Reserves $ Bn 20.69 8-Dec FY18 Jul-Nov 17 Remittances $ Bn 8.02 Jul-Nov 17 Exports* $ Bn 9.03 Jul-Nov 17 Imports* $ Bn 24.06 Jul-Nov 17 Trade Balance* $ Bn -15.03 Jul-Oct 17 Current Account $ Mn -5,013 Foreign Direct Inv. $ Bn 1.15 Jul-Nov 17 Jul-Sep 17 LSM Growth* % 8.36 % 3.59 Jul-Nov 17 Avg. CPI Discount Rate % 5.75 Sep-17 WoW= week Sources: KCCI Research, PMEX , NCCPL, KSE, SBP, PBS* ** Not Meaningful on week; Major Currencies 155 GBP, 18-Dec-17, 147.0 145 135 EUR, 18-Dec-17, 129.5 125 115 105 95 Dec-16 USD Mar-17 GBP Jun-17 Sep-17 Source: KCCI Research ; Oanda.com Quote of the Day "There's a world of difference between truth and facts. Facts can obscure the truth." Maya Angelou Govt., ADB sign $ 380Mn loan agreements Pakistan and Asian Development Bank (ADB) have signed two loan agreements for provision of $ 180Mn for CAREC Corridor Development Investment Program and $ 200Mn for Punjab Intermediate Cities Improvement Investment Project. The ADB has committed to provide $ 800Mn for financing infrastructure projects. Under this program, ADB will provide $ 180Mn as first tranche to National Highway Authority for improving road network along N-55. The second and third tranches, worth $ 260Mn and $ 360Mn, respectively, are expected to be approved in 2019 and 2021. The Nation. Chart of the Day Foreign Investment in Pakistan Biomass power projects: Nepra fixes PKR 8.69 upfront tariff for 30 years Nepra has fixed upfront levelised tariff for biomass power projects at PKR 8.6957 per unit for 30 years, to be applicable from Commercial Operation Date (COD). The upfront tariff has been worked out on the basis of the interest rate of 6% being offered under the SBP scheme. In case of commercial foreign financing, the tariff shall be computed using applicable LIBOR plus a premium of 450 basis points. The authority has further decided to allow financial close time of six months from the date of acceptance of tariff and construction period of eighteen months from the date of financial close for this upfront tariff. BR. 1.14 -0.05 -0.10 -0.10 Lucky Cement enhances capacity Lucky Cement Ltd has increased its production capacity by 20.6% to 9.35Mn tons/annum after successful brownfield expansion for the additional line of 1.3Mn tons/annum at the Karachi plant. Dawn. 0.63 1.15 Mushtaq Motors to start vehicle manufacturing The Ministry of Industries and Production (MoIP) has allowed Khalid Mushtaq Motors (Pvt) Ltd (KMML) to set up a vehicle assembly and manufacturing unit in Nooriabad industrial area under the Greenfield investment category. The company has signed a technical collaboration agreement with the Chinese company KYC, a part of Changhan Group, for assembling light commercial vehicles and mini passenger vans. Dawn. 13th ‘Build Asia’ Exhibition kicks off in Karachi Build Asia is the largest exhibition of construction, real-estate and housing industry, held annually in Pakistan. To run from Dec 1820, the event features a wide array of highly informative conferences, to provide a networking platform for engineers, contractors, builders, consultants, government officials, bankers, policy makers, stakeholders and other practitioners. The Build Asia Exhibition also incorporates forums like Property Asia, Furniture Asia and Stone fair Asia and offers the International and Pakistani business community a strategic launch-pad to access the vibrant Pakistani, Afghan, Chinese, Middle-Eastern markets and Central Asian Republics. Daily Times. EUR USD, 18-Dec-17, 105.7 -0.2 Value in $Bn 0 0.2 0.4 5MFY17 0.6 5MFY18 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 Source: KCCI Research, SBP Disclaimer This report has been prepared by KCCI Research & Development Cell. The information contained herein have been compiled or arrived at based upon information obtained from sources believed to be reliable and in good faith. Such information has not been independently verified. icon represents the sole viewpoint of the KCCI R&D Cell, and is stated to enrich the readers' understanding of the news item. The R&D Dept. bears no responsibility for its correctness or accuracy. Contact: res@kcci.com.pk