Business

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s formal talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on the 9th quarterly review of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) have been delayed further amid authorities’ request for a series of waivers on performance criteria owing to flood losses and the Fund’s push for sticking to committed tax-to-GDP ratio of at least 11pc. “Circumstances are difficult but we have …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s exports to nine regional countries posted a paltry growth of 0.72 per cent in the first quarter (July to September) of 2022-23 from a year ago, the latest data released by the State Bank of Pakistan showed. The country’s exports to Afghanistan, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives account for a small amount …

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Monday approved Kissan Package with a 27 per cent increase in agriculture loan target to Rs1.8 trillion and reshaped Kamyab Jawan Programme and Kamyab Pakistan Programmes through consolidation of their similar schemes. The meeting of the ECC presided over by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar also approved the standard legal framework …

KARACHI: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad said on Monday the country has enough dollars in its coffers to meet foreign debt obligations. Speaking to the press on the sidelines of a ceremony at the Institute of Business Administra­tion (IBA), Mr Ahmad said there’s no reason to worry about a shortage of foreign exchange liquidity. “Our reserves are …

ISLAMABAD: Economic losses from drought, floods and landslides have rocketed in Asia, and last year alone, weather and water-related hazards caused total damage of $35.6 billion, affecting nearly 50 million people, according to a report, entitled “State of the Climate in Asia 2021”, released on Monday. The report, which was produced jointly with the UN Economic and Social Commission for …

COLOMBO: The crisis-hit Sri Lankan economy can turn around by the end of 2023 if budget policies, which are not limited to the International Monetary Fund’s recommendations, are followed, Presi­dent Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Mon­day. IMF recommendations have only been looked at to stabilise the economy, Wickremesinghe, who is also the country’s finance minister, told parliament, delivering the first annual …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and six other nations facing climate risks — called ‘path­finder countries’ — will be the first recipients of ‘Global Shield’ funding, it was announced at the COP27 summit in Egypt on Monday. Bangladesh, Costa Rica, Fiji, Ghana, the Philippines and Senegal were identified as the other recipients of the package by the Vulnerable 20 Group of Finance Minis­ters …

The central banks of Pakistan and China have renewed their commitment to expanding their bilateral trade and investment in the Chinese yuan. For that purpose, they signed a memorandum of understanding on establishing yuan clearing arrangements during a recent visit of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to China. According to a senior banker, Yuan clearance enables Pakistan to access Chinese banks and make …

Pakistan and China are planning to arrange bidding for $10 billion Mainline-1 — the 1,872km Railway Track along with associated facilities from Karachi to Peshawar — next month (December) and have agreed to have its foreign exchange component of $8.4bn fully financed through Renminbi (RMB) based Chinese loan. The bidding would be among the leading Chinese companies to be identified …

Would you believe that out of every 100 rupees the federal government spends each year, Rs52 goes on debt servicing? Sadly, this is true. During July-September 2022, the current expenses of the federal government totalled Rs1.832 trillion. Of this, Rs954 billion was used for domestic and foreign debt servicing, according to the quarterly fiscal review. Domestic debt servicing alone consumed …