KARACHI, FEB 7 /DNA/ – The Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, the President of the Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, the President of All Karachi Industrial Alliance, the Chairman of the FPCCI Advisory Board, and the President and former provincial minister, Mian Zahid Hussain, said on Friday that the government will have to deal with the IMF and GSP Plus reviews in the next few months.
He said the IMF review is necessary for the country’s economy, while the EU review is necessary to save exports.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that the IMF mission, which will review the overall economic situation and the implementation of its conditions, is expected by the end of this month or early next month.
Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that IMF experts will likely have reservations about the failure to achieve privatization and tax targets. Still, Pakistan will get a $1 billion tranche after some assurances.
He said that the IMF would likely emphasize economic stability while discouraging rapid economic growth because it has resulted in a crisis whenever such an attempt has been made.
The business leader said that after the IMF review, the second big challenge will be the European Union’s review of the GSP Plus facility, which has troubled industrialists.
Pakistan received this facility in 2014, after which exports increased by more than 100 percent. In 2023, this facility was extended until 2027. However, some time ago, the European Union announced its review.
He observed that in the event of a negative review by the European Union delegation, the textile sector would be in crisis, and its investments would be at risk.
Mian Zahid Hussain said domestic cotton production has decreased by 50 percent compared to the target. Due to this, the textile sector imported cotton and yarn worth about two billion dollars in the first six months of the current fiscal year, spending a considerable amount of foreign exchange.
Compared to the previous year, imports of cotton and yarn have increased, while purchases from local ginning factories have decreased by thirty-five percent.
Mian Zahid Hussain further said that the government should make serious efforts to increase cotton production while ensuring the success of the IMF and PRC reviews because if neither fails, the country and the nation will have to pay a heavy price.
