Annual exports may jump by four billion dollars. Imports for the ongoing fiscal year may jump by eight billion dollars. Further devaluation of Currency is against national interest.

(December 29, 2017)

President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), President AKIA,   Senior Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Friday said devaluation and other steps may result in an increase of four billion dollars in the total exports.

However, the entire imports for the ongoing fiscal year may jump by eight billion dollars resulting in a wide deficit and more problems for the economic managers, he said.

Mian Zahid Hussain said that policy of getting loans to repay old loans and preferring borrowing over exports has not only damaged economy but also the sovereignty, therefore, the policy should be reviewed.

The Former Minister said that last year’s exports stood at twenty billion dollars while imports were at fifty-two billion dollars. The weakening of the currency has hot the economy and entire population save some exporters, he observed.

The veteran business leader said that Pakistan’s total exports were around twenty billion dollars for the last fiscal while Bangladesh fetched twenty-eight billion dollars on the account of garments only.

The government should stop getting costly loans and bring down the price of energy for the export sector otherwise Pakistani products would be soon wiped off from the international market, he warned.