State
Bank opens yuan, yen accounts to diversify forex reserves management:
The State Bank of
Pakistan (SBP) said two new nostro accounts are being opened in the Chinese
yuan (CNY) and Japanese yen (JPY) to support diversification in the foreign
exchange reserves management.A nostro account is one that a bank holds in a
foreign currency in another bank.According to the SBP’s Annual Performance
Review for 2015-16, a code of conduct for back-office operations has also been
developed and implemented.It said global financial markets were marked by three
major themes in 2015-16: low-to-negative interest rates, high market volatility
and heightened risk perceptions. In line with the overall guiding investment
principles, the returns were optimised through diversification into new
markets, it said.
Sindh
irked as federal govt yet to sort out Rs6bn deduction:
No headway has been
made on the issue of a Rs6 billion deduction by the federal government from
Sindh’s account under the head of withholding tax. A committee formed last
month to sort out the matter has yet to holds its first meeting, official
sources said.The Centre deducted the amount on June 30 from the accounts of the
Sindh’s Excise and Taxation department. This irked the provincial government
that considered it unfair.Under section 231(b) of the Income Tax Ordinance of
2001, withholding tax has to be paid to the federal government at the time of
registration of new cars manufactured locally, and transfer of ownership.
Soaring
prices: Core inflation touches 19-month high at 5.2%:
The era of
historically low interest rates may end soon, as core inflation jumped to 5.2%
in October, further narrowing down the gap between the real interest rate and
the State Bank of Pakistan’s key policy rate. Core inflation – excluding the
price impact of food and energy products – stood at 5.2% in October compared to
the same month of last year, reported the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS)
on Tuesday.The real interest rate is the net return that a saver receives after
erasing the impact of inflation.
Defence
ministry stops PSO from building new oil storages:
The Ministry of
Defence has refused to ease restrictions on building new oil storages at
Keamari and asked the Ministry of Petroleum to take up the matter with the
National Security Council.Pakistan State Oil (PSO), the state-owned oil
marketing giant, is seeking to set up additional storages to keep adequate fuel
reserves and ensure a smooth supply to different consumers.It also wants to lay
a pipeline connecting Karachi Port and Port Bin Qasim in a bid to avoid any
interruption in the supply of petroleum products.After winning required
permission from the Explosives Department and the Oil and Gas Regulatory
Authority, the proposal for building new storages with a capacity of 34,100
tons had been sent to the Ministry of Defence for obtaining its no-objection
certificate, in light of a ban on new oil tanks at the Keamari oil installation
area.
Pakistan
Railways: 62 out of 104 trains continue to incur losses:
The earnings chart of
the cash-strapped Pakistan Railways (PR) illustrates patent inequality in its
passenger earnings segment, with only 40% of trains contributing over 80% of
the revenue for fiscal year 2015-16.The remaining 60% of trains have failed to
reach their break-even point and have instead incurred losses amounting to
Rs1.75 billion, according to PR documents.Currently, PR is operating 104
trains, of which only 42 express trains generate profits. These long-distance
trains, mainly operating on the Main-Line One, generated around Rs17.45 billion
out of total passenger train earnings of Rs20.39 billion for 2015-16.
CGM
likely to invest in Pak power sector:
China General Nuclear
(CGM) Power Corp pledged to continue its active role in development of energy
resources in Pakistan.CGM is among the top-listed companies in China, actively
involved in making direct investment in the regional countries, including
Pakistan, said CGM’s sources.Recently, it has entered into bilateral agreement
with a Malaysian, Edra Global, based in Kuala Lumpur.CGM has 13 electricity
projects with a total installed capacity of 6,620 megawatts across Malaysia,
Pakistan, Egypt, Bangladesh and United Arab Emirates, according to CGN's
website.CGN agreed last year to pay 9.83 billion ringgit to buy Edra Global
from 1MDB, the Malaysian investment fund that is at the center of several
international investigations into alleged corruption and money laundering.The
transaction was completed earlier this year.
LNG
import: deals to be negotiated with six states' firms:
Pakistan has decided
to negotiate Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) import deals with companies of six
countries aimed at meeting gas shortages hitting industry, well informed
sources told Business Recorder. Pakistan is currently facing a severe shortage
of natural gas, both for its electricity generating plants and for general use
by all sectors. Domestic gas production of nearly 4,000 MMCFD is unable to meet
the country's demand; the supply-demand gap is approximately 2,000 MMCFD and
keeps on rising.This shortage of energy is not only causing hardships for the
people but is also inhibiting the economic growth of the country. Therefore,
the Government of Pakistan is pursuing import of LNG to minimise the gas
shortfall. Well informed sources told Business Recorder, pursuant to a bidding
process and ECC as well as Cabinet's approvals dated February 28, 2014 and
April 18, 2014 respectively, Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGC) and Engro
Elengy Terminal (Pvt) Limited (EETPL) executed an LNG Services Agreement (LSA)
on April 30, 2014 for the provision of LNG receiving, storage and
re-gasification services under a levelized tolling fee of $0.66/MMBTU.
Tender
to buy 240 shipments of LNG launched:
Pakistan LNG Ltd has
launched a mid-and a long-term tender to purchase a combined 240 shipments of
liquefied natural gas (LNG), the company said on its website, as the country
emerges to become a major gas importer. Pakistan, which can only meet around
two-thirds of its gas demand, is expected to issue further tenders seeking
twice as much supply to fill out remaining capacity at its new import terminal
at Port Qasim, in the commercial capital Karachi, according to one energy
expert.The mid-term tender covers a period of five years and calls for 60
shipments, while the long-term tender is for 15 years and 180 cargoes,
according to information presented in the tender documents released on the
company's website on Tuesday. Suppliers must submit bids by December 20.
Pakistan has ploughed billions of dollars into LNG infrastructure, including
the construction of a second LNG import terminal and pipelines linking Karachi
with Lahore in the Punjab region, the nation's industrial heartland.
Debt
securities trustee: SECP proposes Rs 50 million equity limit:
The Securities and
Exchange Commission on of Pakistan (SECP) has proposed equity limit of Rs 50
million for persons seeking license to perform functions of debt securities
trustee. The SECP on Tuesday proposed Debt Securities Trustees Regulations,
2016 to issue licensing requirements for the persons intended to operate as
debt securities trustee. According to the proposed regulations, a scheduled
bank, a development financial institution and an investment finance company
shall be exempt from the licensing requirements to act as a debt securities
trustee subject to the specified terms and conditions. The "debt
securities trustee" means a person licensed by the Commission to act as
Debt Securities Trustee and "debt security" includes any instrument
creating or acknowledging indebtedness which is issued or proposed to be issued
by a company including, in particular, debentures, debentures stock, loan
stock, bonds, notes, commercial paper, term finance certificates, Sukuk or any
other conventional or Islamic debt securities of a company, whether
constituting a charge on the assets of the company or not.
