Fitch Solutions has predicted Pakistan's GDP to grow by 4.2% in fiscal year 2022 in its latest report, up from 3.9 percent in the FY21. The credit rating agency noted the increase in vaccination rates in the country, while forecasting the burden of imports on growth.
The State Bank of Pakistan's Monetary Policy Committee has decided to increase the policy rate of the country for the next two months by 25 points basis to 7.25 per cent. This according to the statement is in line with the positive economic recovery.
Pakistani edtech startup 'Maqsad' gets $2.1 million in pre-seed money to help achieve its aim of increasing educational accessibility to the students of Pakistan. It is a one-stop-shop for after-school academic content in the country.
State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Friday has launched a gender mainstreaming policy titled “Banking on Equality”, which aims to reduce the gender gap in financial inclusion and improve women’s access to financial services in the country.
Pakistan's current account deficit has increased 80pc month-on-month to reach $1.48 billion for the month of August. This was expected as the import bill for the month of August reached the highest ever number of $6.31 billion.
Pakistani Fintech Startup Finja has gotten commercial approval for the EMI (Electronic Money Institution) license from the State Bank of Pakistan. The bank was also the first one to receive the approval, in principle, from the SBP in April 2020.
Shaukat Tarin held a virtual meeting with the Executive Secretary of UNESCAP, Ms. Armida Salsiah. He talked about the macro-economic challenges faced by Pakistan and underlined fiscal policies being undertaken to place the economy on a growth trajectory.
Despite the rupee fall, and speculations that it will fall further, Deputy Governor State Bank of Pakistan Dr. Murtaza Saeed had warned the speculators that they will lose, and it seems to have worked. Pakistani currency has seen an uptick against the greenback.
Pakistani Rupee depreciated 0.5 per cent against the US dollar in one day, closing at an all-time low of 168.94 on Tuesday. According to experts, this is due to the increasing trade deficit fuelled by increasing commodity prices, and concerns for the supply of the US dollar.
Pakistani startup BridgeLinx raises $10 million in what was the country's largest seed round, led by Harry Stebbings’ 20 VC, Josh Buckley’s Buckley Ventures, and Indus Valley Capital. BridgeLinx is successfully working to end the inefficiencies in the trucking sector.
Inflows into the country continue to remain on the positive side as remittances for the month of August 2021 reach $2.66 billion, showing an increase of 26.8pc year-on-year. Experts believe it is 'reassuring' for the investors who were worried about increased Current Account Deficit.
Bank financing under the Imran Khan's government’s affordable housing scheme Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar is gaining momentum, as more than Rs154 billion worth of loan applications have been received by the banks. Similarly, the approval rate is increasing as well as banks' readiness to lend increases.
In a huge step towards the modernization and promotion of electric vehicles in Pakistan, Indus Motor Company Limited (IMC) has announced an investment of US dollar 100 million over the next 3 years in the local production of Hybrid Electric Vehicles in Pakistan.
Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) decided to reclassify the MSCI Pakistan Indexes from Emerging Markets to Frontier Markets. It will be done in one step, coinciding with November 2021 Semi-Annual Index Review (SAIR).
Own Money, an illegal premium charged by dealers in Pakistan, is once again skyrocketing, with reports suggesting that it has even touched Rs1 million in recent days. The inability of the supply of cars to match the demand is being blamed upon many reasons in the country.
Finance Minister of Pakistan Shaukat Tarin has directed the Ministry of Commerce to be very careful in forecasting imports, exports as the imports for August were way off the forecasted number. Economic expansion was seen as one of the major determinants for driving imports.
Pakistan Rupee was the best performing currency in March 2021, and in just six months' time, it has been labeled the worst performer in September, continuing its downward plunge. On Monday alone, the PKR fell 0.19% against USD. Recent events in Afghanistan are playing a major role in this fall.
Pakistan's premier multimodal logistics organization National Logistics Cell has achieved a major milestone in obtaining Transports Internationaux Routiers (TIR) admission. With this in mind, the organization plans to play its role in expanding Pakistan's trade routes to Central Asian Republics and Turkey.
