Pakistan Daily Economy Update - 29 June

Transcription

1. June 29 , 2022 KCCI - eBulletin Saudi investors eager to invest in agri, minerals A delegation of businessmen and investors from Saudi Arabia has expressed keen interest in investment in Pakistan’s agriculture sector as a top priority and has shown the willingness to invest in the mineral sector as well, with the intention to export such goods not only to Saudi Arabia but also to other countries of the world. A 32-member high-level delegation of the Federation of Saudi Chambers, headed by Fahad Al-Bash, expressed the interest at a dinner reception hosted by KCCI. Al-Bash said that Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 required skilled and certified labour. He said that an exhibition should be held to introduce Pakistani products on a large scale in Saudi Arabia. He pointed out that Pakistan wanted to increase IT exports to $ 15Bn and IT export opportunities were available in Saudi Arabia under the Vision 2030. He invited Pakistani investors to invest in Saudi Arabia’s petrochemical sector, where they would be able to avail a loan facility of 75% of the total investment from the Saudi Investment Fund and Saudi banks. KCCI President Muhammad Idrees said that Saudi investors should consider joint venture opportunities as well. Tribune. List of Indicators Date / Period Unit Value Change Daily USD-Interbank USD-Open MKT 28-Jun 28-Jun PKR PKR 206.87 207.63 -0.51% 0.18% KSE-100 index FIPI 28-Jun 28-Jun Pts. $ Mn 41,766 0.49 -0.27% NM** Crude Oil 28-Jun $/bbl 111.76 1.32% Gold 28-Jun $/oz 1,821.2 -0.20% Gold (10g) Local 28-Jun PKR 122,260 0.00% Pakistan needs to ‘do more’ for double IMF payout Pakistan will have to take at least two more prior actions to secure two combined tranches of about $ 1.85Bn from the IMF by end-Jul’22 or early Aug’22. Pakistan has received the Memorandum of Economic and Fiscal Policies (MEFP) from the IMF for the combined seventh and eighth reviews. Prior actions include the passage of the federal budget as agreed to with the IMF and presented in the National Assembly on 24th Jun’22 and presenting a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) duly signed by the provincial govts. to jointly provide about PKR 750Bn cash surplus to the Centre. Dawn. Silver 28-Jun $/oz 20.87 -1.49% Cotton(KHI)-40 kg 28-Jun PKR 19,612 -2.66% Kibor-6M 28-Jun % 15.31 -0.01% Forex Reserves 17-Jun $ Bn 14.21 WoW -4.90% Visa regime relaxed to promote Pak-Afghan trade The govt. has decided to relax the visa policy for bilateral trade with neighboring Afghanistan, and hoped the decision will help improve economies of the two countries. PM Sharif directed the authorities concerned to issue six-month multiple-entry visas to transporters from Afghanistan. The cabinet has been directed that a sub-category under the work visa category be introduced in the online visa system. Dawn. Remittances Jul-May 22 $ Bn 28.41 6.26% Exports* Jul-May 22 $ Bn 28.85 27.78% Imports* Jul-May 22 $ Bn 72.18 44.28% Trade Balance* Jul-May 22 $ Bn -43.33 -57.85% Current Account Foreign Direct Inv. Jul-May 22 Jul-May 22 $ Bn $ Bn -15.20 1.60 -1184.8% -4.91% NCOC, Sindh deliberate strategy to tackle Covid As over 70% coronavirus cases across the country are being reported from Karachi alone, the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) has held a meeting with Sindh health officials to formulate a strategy at provincial level. At least two Covid-19 patients died and 333 new cases were reported from across the country during the past one day. Dawn. GST on raw material aggravates shortage of 40 drugs In the wake of 17% GST on the import of raw material, production of medicines has considerably dropped and aggravated the shortage of, at least, 40 essential and lifesaving drugs in markets across the country. The pharmaceutical manufacturing industry had forewarned the govt. about the manifold increase in the production cost of drugs, forcing it to halt the import of raw material due to the imposition of 17% advance tax. The News. High duties on paper spark crisis Printing industry stakeholders and paper importers are facing a paper crisis due to heavy duties imposed on paper imports. They expressed concern over the high paper prices that have put the entire printing industry on the verge of disaster. In an appeal to PM Shehbaz Sharif and Finance Minister Miftah Ismail, they demanded that the govt. reduce import duties and take urgent measures to save the printing industry from disaster. They also demanded the suspension of duty-free import of printed books and printed material from abroad so that the printing industry. Tribune. Foreign debt of $ 13.539Bn incurred in 11 months Pakistan incurred foreign debt of $ 13.539Bn from multiple financing sources in 11MFY22 including $ 2.623Bn from foreign commercial banks (19%) against the total budgeted external loans of $ 14.088Bn for the entire fiscal year FY22. The country received $ 505.65Mn from multiple financing sources in May’22. However, no amount was borrowed from foreign commercial banks during May’22. BR. Self-reliance real goal, not IMF money, says PM PM Shehbaz Sharif has said that although Pakistan expected to receive $ 2Bn from the IMF, the real goal is achieving self-reliance. Dawn. World Bank for sovereign debt changes A senior official at the World Bank has ramped up its calls for changes in sovereign debt laws so govts. have more control when crises strike and they have to restructure their debt. World Bank economists estimate that low- and middle-income economies owe a record $ 9.3Tn to foreign creditors and that 40 poor countries, and about half a dozen middle income ones, are either in debt distress or at a high risk of it. BR. YoY Jul-Mar 22 LSM Growth* % 9.40 % 11.29 Jul-May 22 Avg. CPI Discount Rate % 13.75 May-22 Sources: KCCI Research, PMEX , NCCPL, KSE, SBP, PBS* ** Not Meaningful, WoW= week on week; YoY=Year on Year Major Currencies 275 265 255 245 235 225 215 205 195 185 175 165 155 145 Jun-21 GBP, 28-Jun-22, 253.3 EUR, 28-Jun-22, 217.0 USD, 28-Jun-22, 207.6 USD Sep-21 GBP Dec-21 EUR Mar-22 Quote of the Day “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.” \ NA almost completes budget process; approves 131 demands for grants The National Assembly has completed the process of approving all 131 demands for grants of various ministries and divisions worth over PKR 5.53Tn after rejecting 266 cut motions of opposition members on eight selected ministries after a debate in a non-serious environment, paving the way for the passage of the finance bill. Dawn. SECP to form panel of audit firms SECP has initiated a process of constituting panel of audit firms to conduct statutory audits of certain entities registered or licensed with SECP. Audit firms, having satisfactory rating from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP), under its Quality Control Review (QCR) program can apply for placement on the panel. Interested firms may submit applications on prescribed form, along with an affidavit to the effect that all information provided in the form is accurate, complete, and up-to-date. The News. FBR collects record PKR 6Tn FBR is all set to exceed the upward revised target by 30th Jun’22 as it already collected a record over PKR 6Tn so far in FY22, posting a growth of 29% over the PKR 4.65Tn collection in FY21. Dawn. Policy on toxic waste management okayed Climate change Minister Senator Sherry Rehman has said that the federal cabinet had approved the country's first-ever policy for toxic waste management to reduce threats to human life and ecology in the country. The National Hazardous Waste Management Policy made by the climate change ministry will help control movement of toxic material, including plastics, hospital waste, oil, batteries, and electronic waste and will lead to the development of the toxic waste classification and disposal mechanisms. She said that in the past, 626 containers were illegally shipped to Pakistan by various countries to dump toxic waste. The News. Japan grants $ 2.4Mn for JDS Japan has announced grant aid worth 313Mn Japanese yen (around $ 2.4Mn) for the Human Resource Development Scholarship (JDS) program in Pakistan. JDS has been designed to support social and economic development of the country by providing govt. officials an opportunity to obtain a master’s or doctoral degree in Japan to strengthen the administrative capacity of officials. The News. IT exports fall 27% in May to lowest level since February 2021 Pakistan’s Information Technology exports fell by 27% month-on-month in May’22 at $ 183Mn to lowest monthly level since Feb’21. Exports declined by 8% year on year. The technology sector recorded exports worth $ 2.4Bn in 11MFY22, contributing 38% to overall services’ export and marking a 25% year-on-year jump. The News. Current account deficit exceeds $ 15Bn mark in 11 months The Current Account Deficit (CAD) sharply widened to $ 15.2Bn in 11MFY22 compared to just $ 1.183Bn in 11MFY21. Dawn. Jun-22 Source: KCCI Research Theodore Roosevelt Repatriation of Profit / Dividend on Foreign Investment by Sector Country (11M-FY22 - $ Mn) Financial Business 269.3 Power 198.8 Telecom & IT 185.0 Food 152.7 Oil & Gas Explorations 146.2 Chemicals 116.1 Transport 95.1 Tobacco & Cigarettes 79.3 Transport (Cars, Buses etc.) 51.8 Beverages 41.9 0 100 200 300 Source: KCCI Research; SBP Note If any member is facing any issues pertaining to PakistanAfghanistan investment and trade policies or has project proposals is requested to share the information at secretary@kcci.com.pk for forwarding to the Board of Investment.