CHAKDARA/MINGORA: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that Pakistan was not created to make the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Zardari rich. He said the Sharif and Zardari families looted the country for 30 years.
Addressing a gathering at Malakand University after inaugurating the new Academic Block and Examination Centre, the prime minister argued that Pakistan did not come into being to see the Sharif and Zardari families amassing wealth while the poor people suffered. According to Geo News, the endure burden of Rs150 billion surcharge to enable the government to control the spiralling circular debt. Sources said the government has finalised preparations to bring an ordinance in this regard.
Meanwhile, the State Bank of Pakistan announced the policy rate will be maintained at 7 percent in a bid to support economic recovery.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), following which a statement was issued by the central bank. The committee noted that the “current stance of monetary policy remains appropriate to support economic recovery while keeping inflation expectations well-anchored and maintaining financial stability”.
The SBP said that the committee reviewed the recent rise in inflation and concluded it was “primarily driven by supply side factors and saw little signs of demand led inflation”.
The central bank committee expects that as this “temporary increase in inflation”, that is a by-product of “administered prices” subsides, “inflation should fall to the 5-7 percent target range over the medium-term”.
It said that in the absence of “unforeseen developments”, it is expected the monetary policy settings to “remain broadly unchanged in the near term”.
The MPC foresaw that as economic recovery stabilises and makes a return to full capacity possible, the policy rate in the future will be “measured and gradual to achieve mildly positive real rates”.
The statement said that the growth in FY21, “while still modest, at around 3 percent [...] is now projected to be higher than previously anticipated due to improved prospects for manufacturing and reflecting in part the monetary and fiscal stimulus provided during COVID”.
The SBP further noted that “recent inflation out-turns have been volatile, with the lowest reading on headline inflation in more than two years in January 2021 followed by a sharp rise in February”.
According to SBP estimates, the recent increase in electricity tariffs and sugar and wheat prices accounts for about 1.5 percentage points of the 3 percentage point increase in inflation between the January and February out-turns.
The MPC also took stock of the factors which pose a threat to the outlook of growth and inflation.
On the growth front, it said that in spite of the recent momentum, risks prevail due to the recent emergence of the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, just as Pakistan has begun its vaccination drive.
In terms of the risks to the inflation rate, the committee noted that ahead of the budget this summer, any wage negotiations and tax measures “could add further supply-side shocks”.
“In addition, optimism about a stronger US-led world recovery this year is translating into higher international commodity prices, including both food and oil, which could continue to feed into domestic inflation,” the SBP statement said.
The central bank left interest rates unchanged at 7 percent for a third consecutive meeting in January after slashing them five times last year by a total of 625 basis points (bps).
“The recent increase in electricity prices will continue to manifest in headline numbers in coming months, keeping average inflation in FY21 close to the upper end of the previously announced range of 7-9 percent,” said the statement.
Meanwhile, the weekly inflation report issued by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics showed that out of 51 items, the prices of 22 items increased, nine items prices decreased, and prices of 20 items remained unchanged.
Meanwhile, Attorney General Khalid Javed Khan called on Prime Minister Imran Khan in Islamabad to discuss legal and constitutional matters.
Targeting security forces dedicated to maintaining law and order is outright act of terrorism, says Bilawal
EAD data shows Pakistan received $259m from bilateral creditors during first four months of fiscal year
CM discusses several critical projects with Wapda Chairman Lt Gen Sajjad Ghani during meeting
Sindhu has been appointed on contract for one year, appointment is effective immediately until further notice
With approval of federal secretary science and technology, formal orders have been issued
Russia carried out strike on Ukrainian city of Dnipro which Putin said was test of its new missile
