Business

Dollar crunch to force import suspension of eatables, drinks in Pakistan

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Grocers association says all banks have refused to provide dollars.
No shipment would be cleared that was dispatched after June 25.
Importers responsible for clearance of goods that have reached.

KARACHI: Owing to the non-availability of dollars, commercial importers have announced to stop the import of all eatables and drinks from June 25, The News reported Monday.

According to a statement issued by Karachi Wholesale Grocers Association Secretary Farhat Siddique, all banks have refused to provide them with dollars.

After a thorough discussion, the association decided that importers should inform their indenters that no shipment should be dispatched after June 25.

The importers are only responsible for the clearance of goods that have reached the port or are on the way. No shipment would be cleared that was dispatched after June 25.

The association lamented that due to lack of foreign currency, thousands of containers are stuck at the port and they are paying fines and other charges on them.

The statement said the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) is not providing the much-needed foreign exchange and its policies are extremely harmful to the country’s economy.

Left with barely enough foreign exchange reserves to cover one month’s imports, the coalition government is desperately trying to manage a balance of payments crisis and bring inflation under control after it hit a record of nearly 38% last month.

The dollar crunch, restrictions on imports, and delay in opening letters of credit have severely affected several sectors of the country as none of them met the growth targets set for the fiscal year 2022-23.

Business

SFD and Pakistan Sign Two Deals Totaling $1.61BLN

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Two agreements totaling $1.61 billion have been inked by Pakistan and the Saudi Fund for Development to improve their bilateral economic cooperation.

Business

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan sign an MOU to strengthen their auditing industry collaboration.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

A spokesperson for the office of the Auditor-General of Pakistan (AGP) announced on Monday that the two countries have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation in public sector auditing through improved cooperation between audit institutions of both countries, as well as training programs and the exchange of trainers.

This comes as a group from Saudi Arabia’s General Court of Audit (GCA), headed by GCA President Dr. Hussam bin Abdulmohsen Alangari, arrived in Pakistan on Sunday for a four-day visit.

The agreement was signed during AGP Muhammad Ajmal Gondal’s meeting with the Saudi delegates, aiming to strengthen audit cooperation, enhance knowledge-sharing, and improve governance, transparency and accountability in government spending.

Public relations officer Muhammad Raza Irfan of the AGP’s office told Arab News that the deal will further advance bilateral collaboration between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in addition to enhancing professional ties between the two nations’ auditing institutions.

In a statement released from his office, AGP Gondal was cited as saying, “This collaboration marks a significant step toward fostering international cooperation in auditing.”

“The exchange of ideas and methodologies will undoubtedly strengthen our capacity to meet emerging challenges and set new benchmarks for public accountability.”

Discussions at Monday’s meeting focused on fostering closer ties between the Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, sharing innovative audit methodologies, and planning collaborative initiatives for the future, according to the AGP office.

The two parties decided to increase their knowledge of theme, environmental, and impact audits as well as to exchange best practices in audit standards, performance audits, and citizen participation audits.

The statement added, “It also agreed to exchange trainers, address new auditing challenges, plan cooperative audits, including a performance audit on the oil and gas sector in 2025, and work together on training programs.”

Both sides reaffirmed their shared commitment to promoting transparency, accountability and excellence in public sector auditing.

Business

The government chooses to continue the PIA privatization process.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) privatization process will be restarted by the federal government, and expressions of interest would be requested within the month. Officials stated that the Prime Minister’s Committee on Privatization will convene to make the final decision.

Usman Bajwa, the secretary of the Privatization Commission, gave a briefing on the updated procedure to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Privatization. Additionally, he disclosed that airlines other than PIA are now able to compete with regional carriers thanks to IMF-approved aircraft tax concessions.

Farooq Sattar, the chairman of the privatization committee, underlined the importance of giving PIA workers at least five years of job security. Employee protection will continue to be a top priority and will be resolved prior to bidding, the Privatization Commission promised.

PIA’s liabilities totaling Rs650 billion have already been assumed by the government, and an additional Rs45 billion in outstanding debts must be paid before the privatization process can begin. As of the now, PIA has assets around Rs155 billion and liabilities worth Rs200 billion. It will be necessary for the new buyer to expand the fleet by 15 to 20 aircraft.

Additionally, the Privatization Committee has sought a timeline for the privatization of Faisalabad, Gujranwala, and Islamabad Electric Supply Companies. Officials stated that after the appointment of a financial advisor, the privatization process for these companies will accelerate.