Iranians showing
interest in the Pakistan Steel Mills:
A 10-member delegation of Mobarakeh Steel Company of Iran
has reached Karachi to examine possibilities of acquiring Pakistan Steel Mills
(PSM) as China's Boa Steel Group is almost "silent" after showing
interest in the entity. Secretary Industries and Production, Khizer Hayat Gondal
informed a parliamentary panel last week that the government is determined to
privatise the PSM but it is facing difficulties in finding prospective buyers
in the market. Well-informed sources told Business Recorder that the accounts
of PSM have not been audited for the last three years and it is difficult for
auditors to evaluate the actual price of the national asset. The auditors have
also not decided that PSM should be privatized as a going concern.
K-E seeks duty
concessions on IPP pattern:
K-Electric (company) has approached Federal Board of Revenue
(FBR) seeking customs duty concessions on the same pattern as available to
Independent Power Producers (IPPs) to allow all power generation projects/IPPs
connecting/supplying power to K-Electric to enjoy duty concessions. Sources
told Business Recorder that the company has also explained in detail the
rationale behind proposed duty concessions on import of plant machinery and
equipment for an IPP being built to supply power to K-Electric.
Money Market: Bank
borrowings increase:
THE government raised Rs147.25bn from the auction of Market
Treasury Bills of various tenors last Wednesday, missing its target of Rs200bn
and also falling short of the received amount of Rs193.52bn. Of the total,
three month T-bills fetched Rs103.78bn at a cut off yield of 5.99pc, followed
by six month T-bills with Rs43.46m at 6.01pc. Bids received for 12 months were
rejected. The central bank had received total bids worth Rs193.52bn: 3 month
T-bill Rs118.58bn, followed by 6 month T-bill Rs72.59bn and 12 month T-bill
Rs2.36bn.
Sugar mills resume
operations:
ALMOST half of Sindh’s sugar mills suspended crushing by the
middle of this month, owing to ‘no’ or ‘scant’ cane supplies. These sugar mills
— mainly belonging to one group — started crushing on November 15 as per the
understanding reached with growers on cane price in Oct 7 meeting in Karachi.
But, the millers said, sugarcane growers stopped supplying cane hoping that
mills would increase the cane rate. “We closed our mills in line with the
policy of the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association, being its member, otherwise we
were getting normal supplies of sugarcane. The PSMA took this decision to
suspend crushing in the wake of inadequate supplies of sugarcane to other
mills”, says Mohammad Ali Shah Jamote, owner of Matiari sugar mills, which
commences crushing in late October or early November every season.
Largest gas field:
Centre flouts law by giving extension in Sui lease:
The federal government has admitted that it has violated the
spirit of 18th Constitutional Amendment by giving extension in mining lease for
Sui – the country’s largest gas field – to Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL)
without consent of the Balochistan government. Under the new arrangement,
consumer gas prices are likely to jump up 9.7% in order to recover Rs25.4
billion following the increase in gas price for the Sui field located in Dera
Bugti, Balochistan.
Saudi Arabia to sell
49% of Aramco within decade: report
Saudi Arabia plans to sell up to 49% of its oil giant Saudi
Aramco within 10 years as the world’s largest crude exporter tries to lower its
deficit, local media said Saturday. The Al-Eqtisadiah daily quoted an unnamed
official as saying the sale would raise funds to be spent “at home and abroad”
in what is expected to form the world’s largest state investment fund. The
Kingdom is looking to diversify its oil-dependent economy and has already
announced cutbacks after its 2015 deficit snowballed to $97 billion (93 billion
euros).
Ties with Iran:
Ambassador stresses increasing trade volume:
There is tremendous scope to strengthen trade and economic
ties between Pakistan and Iran, as both countries are big markets and home to a
joint population of 280 million people. This was said by Pakistan Ambassador to
Iran Asif Khan Durrani during his visit to the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (LCCI). Former LCCI presidents and executive committee members also
spoke on the occasion.
CDWP clears three
CPEC-related projects:
Just days before their official inclusion in the China-Pakistan
Economic Corridor (CPEC), the government on Friday cleared three infrastructure
projects along the western and eastern routes at a cost of Rs109 billion,
fulfilling the last formality for their inclusion into CPEC. The Central
Development Working Party (CDWP) cleared these schemes so that they could be
placed before the Joint Cooperation Committee meeting (JCC) – the body mandated
to add or delete any project in CPEC. The JCC meetings will take place in
Beijing next week.
Disruption in oil
supplies to power plants feared:
Pakistan is again facing the spectre of oil shortage that
may hamper the flow of fuel to armed forces and spark prolonged power outages
as outstanding bills of electricity producers for oil supplies are piling up.
Pakistan State Oil (PSO), the state oil marketing giant, has warned the
government that oil supplies may be disrupted in the wake of financial crisis
being faced by the company due to delay in settling of its dues by the power
producers.
Non-filers will have
to pay more tax next fiscal year:
Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Nisar Muhammad Khan
has said that broadening of the tax net is vital for better development of the
country and business community should cooperate in realising the goal. “Higher
tax on non-filers of returns compared to filers is meant to encourage tax
culture in the country and in next budget, tax rates for the non-filers will be
further enhanced so that more people could be attracted to the tax net,” he
said while talking to business community at the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (ICCI).
PPL invests Rs25
billion to increase gas production in Sindh:
Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid
Khaqan Abbasi said that Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) has so far invested Rs25
billion to set up three gas processing facilities at Gambat, Sindh. The
facilities would help increase gas production and address the issue of gas
crisis in the country, he said, after inaugurating the Gas Processing Facility
II (GPF-II) of 50 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) at Gambat South
Block.
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