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Industrialists fear budget will kill exports | The Express Tribune

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KARACHI:

Industrialists and exporters have expressed concern over the federal budget for fiscal year 2024-25 and described it as a confused effort. They believe that the proposed initiatives will destroy exports while causing hefty losses to the country in terms of foreign exchange earnings.

Lasbela Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Ismail Suttar dubbed the document as a confused budget, claiming that the “masters” did not want economic stability in the country.

“Imagine a country which fails to support its exporters, what else can we expect from a budget which converts the 1% presumptive tax regime into normal taxation, which is either 35% or 49% on profits,” he said.

“I remember discussing this point with the then finance minister, Ishaq Dar, just last year in one of the sessions before the budget, when they were thinking on these lines, and he told me categorically to go and announce that this will never be agreed,” Suttar recalled.

However, just after one year, he said, the new tax regime for exporters was part of the budget, which would kill exports, and even those few industries which had room would have no option but to go for under-invoicing, depriving Pakistan of the much-needed foreign exchange.

The export industry needed support and handholding rather than being taxed, he remarked and urged the finance minister to immediately reverse the decision and even reduce the 1% presumptive tax to 0.5%.

“We should have boundaries defined so that the next time when they sit with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), all could know on which points we are not in for negotiations.”

Commenting on the FY25 budget, Site Association of Industry (SAI) President Muhammad Kamran Arbi called it a laughing stock as the government was toying with both industrialists and exporters.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of any economy but unfortunately the government has increased the tax on SMEs from 35% to over 45%, he lamented.

Arbi cautioned that high taxes on exporters’ profit and income would prevent them from declaring their actual earnings because they would be heavily taxed.

The government must know that Pakistani’s goods are more expensive than its regional competitors in the international market, he pointed out and asked “how our exporters will be able to compete with their regional counterparts?”

Though the government desires to provide incentives to the solar industry, the industrialists are compelled to purchase gas and electricity at exorbitant tariffs, which are already out of their range. “How can they sell their products at lower rates, if they consume energy at record high costs,” he said.

 

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Pakistan

Suzuki Bolan discontinued in Pakistan after 36 years; Here’s replacement for ‘Carry Dabba’ – Pakistan Observer

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LAHORE – Finally, it’s time to say goodbye to the iconic Suzuki Bolan as Pak Suzuki pulled plugs to replace the minivan with another model. Over the last 3.5 decades, Suzuki Bolan enjoyed decent sales and was valued for its flexibility, serving a multi-passenger vehicle and for commercial purposes.

Amid shift in auto landscape in Pakistan, Bolan becomes latest drive to be discontinued after Suzuki Mehran, which you can still spot.

Pictures of Suzuki Bolan’s last batch surfaced online, and Pakistanis hit nostalgia as many grew up in this vehicle. The final chassis number marked as 01151691. The country’s oldest automaker and maker of Bolan also confirmed discontinuation of the 800cc Carry Dabba.

The company decided to replace Bolan for its outdated design and lack of safety features. Amid its low sales, consumer demand for a modern replacement like Changan Karvaan increased.

Suzuki Every to Replace Bolan

Suzuki earlier mentioned that Every will replace Bolan, and one of its recent model was unveiled at a recent auto show.

The launch of Every models faced delays due to import challenges and it is expected to launch in mid October.

Suzuki Bolan Price in Pakistan

 

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Pakistan

Gold prices reach historic high in Pakistan – Pakistan Observer

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Your source for latest Pakistan, world news. Stay updated on politics, business, sports, lifestyle, CPEC, and breaking news. Accurate, timely, and comprehensive coverage.

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Pakistan

Stocks rally past 82,000 mark as investors bet on IMF deal approval

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A man uses a mobile phone as he takes a photo of the electronic board displaying share prices during a trading session at the Pakistan Stock Exchange, on November 28, 2023. — Reuters

Stocks hit a record high on Friday, with the benchmark index topping the 82,000 mark as investors binged on big names amid forecasts of a further drop in inflation, strengthening the case for another rate cut by the State Bank of Pakistan in its next monetary policy meeting, traders said.

The KSE-100 index jumped by 615.16 points, or 0.76%, to reach 82,074.44 from its previous close of 81,459.28.

The index, fuelled by buying activity in heavyweight shares, rallied nearly 900 points during the opening hours of trading before succumbing to profit-taking in the latter half of the session, trimming early gains.

Analysts attributed this bull run to expectations of a sharp drop in inflation and interest rates. They added that government securities now have a kinked yield curve, with 2-year and 5-year yields above the 3-year yield.

Buying activity was seen in key sectors, including cement, commercial banks, fertiliser, and refineries, with index-heavy stocks such as MEBL, UBL, ENGRO, and FFC trading in the green.

Experts added that part of the positivity comes from investors anticipating the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board’s approval.

The IMF is scheduled to review Pakistan’s 37-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF), amounting to about $7 billion, on September 25.

On Thursday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) rose on improved local macroeconomic indicators and a larger-than-expected reduction by the Federal Reserve, with the KSE-100 index closing at 81,459.29, a gain of 997.95 points or 1.24%.

Meanwhile, world stocks hovered near record highs on Friday, underpinned by a big interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve earlier this week, while the yen eased after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda tempered market expectations around imminent rate hikes, according to Reuters.

The dollar climbed 1.2% on the Japanese currency to 144.29 – its strongest in two weeks – on the back of Ueda’s remarks, having earlier fallen around 0.6% to 141.74 after the BOJ kept interest rates steady in a widely expected move.

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Pakistan

PSX surges 1,510 points, crosses 81,000 mark amid positive economic signals – Pakistan Observer

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KARACHI –  Pakistan Stock Exchange on Thursday experienced a major surge of 1,510 points which resulted in the index crossing the 81,000-point level, rising to 81,971 points.

The factors such as expectations of receiving approval for a loan program from the IMF this month, a gradual reduction in the external financial gap and loan-related difficulties, a growth of 2.38% in large-scale industries, and the Asian Development Bank’s indication of providing $8 billion in loans over the next four years contributed to this bullish trend in the Pakistan Stock Exchange, allowing the index to surpass the psychological level of 81,000 points.

Besides it, the State Bank’s decision to reduce interest rates by 2% has positively impacted capital market activities while recoveries in the textile, food, chemical, auto, and garments sectors have kept the market in the green zone since the start of trading.

 

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