Pakistan Daily Economy Update - 27 April

Transcription

1. Apr . 27, 2017 KCCI - eBulletin IMF to help set up infrastructure bank After attending spring meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington DC, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has announced that Pakistan Infrastructure Bank would be established with a paid up capital of $ 1Bn having 20% share of both IMF and Pakistan govt. The rest would be met by the international organizations. The Minister has further said that Pakistan Development Funds would also be launched with shares worth PKR 100Bn which would be later enlisted on Pakistan Stock Exchange. He further mentioned that govt. has entered into consultation with the World Bank to introduce solar energy as a new electricity generation alternative at the lowest cost in Pakistan. BR. Exim Bank to be operational by December Senate Standing Committee on Commerce has been informed that proposed Export-Import Bank (Exim Bank) will be operational by Dec‘17 and PKR 7Bn has already been released in this regard. Ministry of Commerce informed the committee that names of three persons for appointment as members of Exim Bank to the finance minister has been sent. Dawn. Govt. mulls amnesty scheme for foreign assets holders The federal govt. is considering an amnesty scheme for Pakistanis to declare their foreign assets by paying a nominal tax of 15% to broaden the tax base of the country. In this regard, FBR Chairman has informed National Assembly’s Finance Standing Committee that they have received such proposal of declaring foreign assets by paying a tax. Responding to the FBR’s budget proposal, Committee Chairman has said that it should be only 5% in order to broaden tax base of the country. The Nation. Ministry may take NEPRA to court for tariff revision The Ministry of Water and Power is mulling over the option of taking Nepra to court if it refuses to burden honest consumers with the annual cost of power theft amounting to PKR 82Bn. Ministry said that it would take up with Nepra the proposal of quarterly tariff adjustment in line with actual line losses and bill recoveries. Tribune. Russia, India eyeing to tap Pakistan gas market As Russia fears losing markets in the EU because of the ongoing tussle with the US and EU over the Ukraine issue, India is looking to capture Pakistan’s market for exporting gas by laying offshore gas pipeline. Russian gas giant Gazprom has already signed a memorandum of understanding with Engineers India on conducting joint studies for a gas pipeline between Russia and India. Now, it is learnt, Russia conveyed to Pakistan that it wanted to build an offshore gas pipeline passing through Gwadar port to India to export gas and offered Pakistan to join this project. Tribune. Govt agrees to allow private sector to market LNG The government has agreed to allow the private sector to market imported gas under the energy sector reforms in a bid to break monopoly of state-run gas utilities. A high-level meeting, chaired by Minister of Petroleum and Natural Resources, agreed on the World Bank’s proposed plan. The ministry has already been engaged in reforms entail a two-tier gas market, nondiscriminatory access to gas networks (including third-party access) and restructuring of transmission and distribution systems along with a new tariff and subsidy methodology. Tribune. Nepra approves PKR 4.35/unit cut in tariff Nepra has approved a total PKR 4.35 per unit reduction for Feb.’17 and Mar.’17 under monthly fuel adjustment mechanism. The amount of adjustment will be made in the power consumers’ electricity bills of May.’17. However this adjustment/relief will not be available to the lifeline consumers and domestic consumers in Karachi. The Nation. Ministry tasked with amendments in TDAP Act Commerce Ministry has been tasked to come up with recommendations on amendments in Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) Act, 2013 as well as reforms to build the capacity of the institution by mid of Jun.’17. In this regard, Secretary Commerce has responded to the Senate’s body that ministry is fully committed to introduce reforms in the TDAP and evolve a research institute for boosting country’s overall trade volume. He further said that Ministry is going to establish a new think tank which will carry out academic research, while playing a major role in building the capacity of traders. The News. Sale/transfer of immovable property: exemption from capital gains may be restored The govt. is likely to restore exemption from capital gains on sale/transfer of immovable property to Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) scheme in the upcoming budget (2017-18). According to SECP, it has no economic/business implication for the property’s owner and capital gains accruing to the seller through this transfer are only paper gains. BR. Cement makers exploring new markets Cement companies in Pakistan are exploring new markets to sustain their plant expansions after losing market in South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique. Annual cement exports to India is around one million tonnes. Total cement exports fell to 3.64Mn tonnes fetching $ 191.5Mn in 9MFY17 compared to 4.56Mn tonnes earning $ 248Mn 9MFY16. The exports are expected to remain between 5Mn and 6Mn tonnes in the current fiscal year. Dawn. NA committee calls for revival of sick textile units The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance has supported the proposal by the textile sector to restructure bank loans of sick units to help their revival. Members of the textile sector informed the committee that the revival of sick units will earn $ 1Bn in foreign exchange and create 5Mn jobs. Dawn. Pakistan, Bulgaria sign accord to avoid double taxation Pakistan and Bulgaria have signed the Agreement for Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income (ADTA) after the conclusion of second round of negotiations in Islamabad. It will reduce tax impediments to cross-border trade and investment by assisting taxpayers and tax administrations of the respective countries. The Nation. Economic Indicators List of Indicators Date / Period Unit Value Change Daily 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr 26-Apr PKR PKR Pts. $ Mn $/bbl $/oz PKR $/oz PKR % 104.84 106.00 49,828 -1.70 48.95 1,270 43,500 17.58 7,180 6.17% 7-Apr $ Bn 21.74 -0.01% 0.00% 0.09% NM** -0.91% 0.58% 0.00% 0.18% 0.00% 0.01% WoW 0.88% YoY -2.29% -3.06% 18.67% -38.80% -160.74% USD-Interbank USD-Open MKT KSE-100 index FIPI Crude (JU'17) Gold (MY'17) Gold (10g) Local Silver (MY'17) Cotton(KHI)-40 kg Kibor-6M Forex Reserves Jul-Mar 17 Remittances $ Bn 14.06 Jul-Mar 17 Exports* $ Bn 15.12 Jul-Mar 17 Imports* $ Bn 38.50 Jul-Mar 17 Trade Balance* $ Bn -23.39 Jul-Mar 17 Current Account $ Mn -6,130 % 4.01 Avg. CPI-FY17* Jul-Mar 17 Mar-17 Discount Rate % 5.75 Sources: KCCI Research, PMEX , NCCPL, KSE, SBP, PBS* ** Not Meaningful WoW= week on week; YoY=Year on Year Major Currencies 175 165 155 145 135 125 115 105 95 85 75 Apr-16 GBP, 26-Apr-17, 134.1 EUR, 26-Apr-17, 114.0 USD, 26-Apr-17, 104.5 Jul-16 USD Oct-16 GBP EUR Jan-17 Apr-17 Source: KCCI Research ; Oanda.com Quote of the Day "Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress." Mahatma Gandhi Chart of the Day Pakistan's Foreign Exchange Reserves (Jun.'05 - Mar.'17) 16.42 18.14 13.53 9MFY17 FY16 FY15 5.15 4.96 5.17 9.10 5.04 6.01 5.01 10.80 4.49 14.78 3.46 12.96 3.79 9.12 3.31 8.58 2.82 13.35 2.30 10.77 2.36 9.80 2.79 FY14 FY13 FY12 FY11 FY10 FY09 FY08 FY07 FY06 FY05 0.0 1.5 3.0 4.5 6.0 7.5 9.0 10.5 12.0 13.5 15.0 16.5 18.0 19.5 21.0 22.5 24.0 Auction for MTBs: govt. mops up PKR 360Bn SBP Reserves ($ Bn) Banks Reserves ($ Bn) The SBP has conducted auction for sale of 3-month, 6-month and 12-month MTBs and received bids amounting to PKR Source: KCCI Research, SBP 407.72Bn with a realized amount of PKR 399.16Bn. Bids amounting to PKR 269.81Bn were accepted for 3-month at 5.99% cutDisclaimer off yield, PKR 84.55Bn have been borrowed at 6.01% against the sale of 6-month T-bills while PKR 5.66Bn have been raised This report has been prepared by KCCI Research & Development Cell. The information through the auction for 12-month T-bills at 6.03%. BR. 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. Three-month period ended Mar. 31, 2017: MCB Bank posts PKR 6.15Bn PAT icon represents the sole viewpoint of the KCCI R&D Cell, and is stated to enrich the readers' MCB Bank Ltd. has posted profit before tax of PKR 9.47Bn (EPS for 1QCY17: PKR 5.52) and profit after tax of PKR 6.15Bn during understanding of the news item. The R&D Dept. bears no responsibility for its correctness or 1QCY17. BR. accuracy. Contact: res@kcci.com.pk