Pakistan Daily Economy Update - 28 March

Transcription

1. Mar . 28, 2017 KCCI - eBulletin IHC orders regulators out of ministries’ control Islamabad High Court (IHC) has set aside a notification placing Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra), Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), Frequency Allocation Board (FAB) and Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) under their line ministries.The Council of Common Interests (CCI) had been expressly mandated to supervise and exercise control over regulatory authorities established under federal laws. Dawn. Govt. mulls doubling banking transaction threshold to PKR 100, 000 In a meeting with Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Governor SBP Ashraf Wathra has said that govt. has agreed to double tax free minimum limit of banking transaction by non-filers to PKR 100,000 in the upcoming budget of FY18. The govt. in its FY16 budget had introduced 0.4% WHT on banking transaction of PKR 50,000 per day, for non-filers which is applicable till Mar. 31, 2017. With regard to business community’s demand to review 100% cash margin requirement on various imported items, the Governor said that items have been selected after thorough deliberations and instead of spending foreign exchange on import of non-essential items there is need to spend on import of capital goods. The News. Power sector, privatisation to dominate IMF talks Power sector and privatisation process are likely to dominate Article-IV consultations on $ 6.64Bn Extended Fund Facility (EFF) in Dubai starting from Mar. 28, 2017 (today) and would conclude on Apr. 5, 2017. The IMF's close engagement with Pakistan is continuing through a policy dialogue in the context of regular consultations and post-program monitoring. BR. NA body asks Nepra to address overbilling complaints The National Assembly’s Standing Committee has directed the electricity regulator to establish its sub-offices at the district level within three months to address complaints of consumers and strengthen its complaint resolution mechanism and investigate overbilling in respect of an instance pointed out by members of the National Assembly. Dawn. Thar coal power plant: Nepra likely to change tariff structure Nepra is most likely to replace upcoming Thar-coal power plant's tariff structure from upfront to competitive bidding mode by adjusting different benchmarks after adjusting cost, IRR and efficiency, if any and other parameters. Fatima Electric Company Ltd., Qureshi Law Associates and Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company have submitted their comments on different issues framed by the regulator's technical and legal teams. BR. Prime Minister announces metro bus, airport for Hyderabad Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has announced development projects for Hyderabad, which includes an international airport and a metro bus scheme. Addressing a charged-up crowd at Hyderabad, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said that the govt. has started a number of development projects for the amelioration of masses. He revealed that the government has also started projects in order to fulfill the future needs of electricity in Pakistan. BR. Wathra stresses credit parity across regions SBP Governor while speaking at the launch of the second edition of Pakistan Banking Awards has said that the criterion for Pakistan Banking Awards 2017 should include the geographical distribution of banks’ loans and deposits to promote financial inclusion. Governor said that the banks should be rewarded for expanding their footprint in neglected areas. Pakistan Banking Awards, which started in 2016, are given to individual banks based on their performance in the developmental, financial and customer service spheres. Dawn. SBP clarifies position on PKR 500 notes SBP has said that both PKR 500 banknotes with or without the Optical Variable Ink (OVI) flag are genuine, provided all other security features are intact. With regard to news reports about the authenticity of Rs500 banknotes without the OVI flag, the SBP said it introduced the new design of PKR 500 notes in 2006. Later on, another security feature, the colour-shifting flag made of OVI, was added to enhance the anti-counterfeiting resilience and ease in identification by the general public. This resulted in the availability of both types of Rs500 banknotes: those issued in 2006-09 without OVI and those issued post-January 25, 2010 with the OVI feature, the central bank added. Dawn. SBP develops ‘universal’ mobile phone app for financial transactions SBP has developed a mobile phone application to enable all users to make financial transactions across the country from a single platform. SBP Executive Director said that the ‘Asaan Mobile Account (AMA)’ would provide ‘one platform’ to all bank accountholders on different mobile phone networks to conduct financial transactions with anyone in the country. Tribune. Pakistan’s policies do not support economic growth Report launched by the Institute for Policy Reforms (IPR) has noted that Pakistan’s policies do not support its economic growth and the country must institute wide scale reforms as growth can be achieved by ensuring a robust macro-economy, policies that stimulate investment and better governance. According to the findings, Pakistan does not generate enough savings for investment in future growth. There is major infrastructure deficit and low private investment, while spending on worker skills, education and other human needs is paltry. Tribune. Govt. announces Pakistan’s first electricity import regulations Nepra has unveiled the country’s maiden rules to govern electricity import from foreign countries as well as generation facilities located in AJ&K and Gilgit Baltistan in view of growing power demand and distribution sector’s interest in transmission from across the border. As per the new regulations, a buyer or importer will file an application with the authority for rate determination. The regulator has also notified draft Review of Power Purchase Agreements Regulations, 2017 and Power Acquisition Programs (Standards & Procedures) Rules, 2017 for soliciting feedbacks within a month. The News. Provinces to face 35% water shortage: Irsa The provinces are likely to face up to 35% water shortage during the early Kharif season. In this regard, Indus River System Authority (Irsa) has said that during upcoming Kharif season, water availability in the system will be around 108 to 113Mn acre feet (maf). Indus River could face 40% water losses in early Kharif season which would gradually come down to 20%, while Jhelum and Chenab Rivers would face 10% losses in early Kharif which would reduce to 0% in late Kharif. Early Kharif starts from Apr. 1 and continue till Jun. 10, 2017. A meeting of the technical committee of the water regulator, the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) has estimated total water availability of 108-113Mn acre feet during Kharif. During the meeting, the Sindh province requested that water flows should not be stored in dams in case of shortage and its discharges be made in line with the provincial irrigation requirements. Dawn/The Nation. 1,223MW Balloki project to be ‘fully functional’ in 2018 Water and Power State Minister has said that the 1,223MW Balloki power project will be fully functional by early next year. During visit to Balloki power project near Chunian, he said three LNG-based power plants in public sector would add 2,400MW to the national grid by Sept.’17 and would achieve full potential of 3,600MW by Jan.’18. The minister further said that load management will be done only in those areas, where bills are not paid. BR. Economic Indicators List of Indicators Date / Period Unit Value Change Daily Crude (MY'17) Gold (AP'17) Gold (10g) Local Silver (AP'17) Cotton(KHI)-40 kg Kibor-6M 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar 27-Mar PKR PKR Pts. $ Mn $/bbl $/oz PKR $/oz PKR % 104.85 106.65 48,680 -3.60 47.81 1,254.6 43,585 18.07 7,272 6.12% Forex Reserves 17-Mar $ Bn 22.05 -0.01% -0.23% -0.59% NM** -0.66% 0.78% -0.10% 1.92% -2.17% -0.01% WoW -1.01% YoY -2.52% -3.90% 15.99% -34.33% -120.51% USD-Interbank USD-Open MKT KSE-100 index FIPI Jul-Feb 17 Remittances $ Bn 12.36 Jul-Feb 17 Exports* $ Bn 13.32 Jul-Feb 17 Imports* $ Bn 33.52 Jul-Feb 17 Trade Balance* $ Bn -20.20 Jul-Feb 17 Current Account $ Mn -5,473 % 3.85 Avg. CPI-FY17* Jul-Feb 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 Mar-16 GBP, 27-Mar-17, 131.3 EUR, 27-Mar-17, 113.6 USD, 27-Mar-17, 104.6 Jun-16 USD Sep-16 GBP Dec-16 Mar-17 Source: KCCI Research ; Oanda.com EUR Quote of the Day "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." John Quincy Adams Chart of the Day PROFIT REPATRIATION ON FOREIGN INVESTMENT (8MFY17 VS. 8MFY16) 137 146 Power 120 Financial Business Oil & Gas… 73 Petroleum Refining 46 Beverages Chemicals Petro Chemicals 0 Transport Cement 0.00 45 49 38 43 170 85 82 Value 78 35 34 30 32 50.00 8MFY17 100.00 150.00 200.00 8MFY16 Value in $ Mn 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