ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will cut taxes on imports of raw materials to spur manufacturing and overall economic growth, Bloomberg quoted Prime Minister Imran Khan’s trade adviser as saying on Monday.
Customs duties on input items needed by pharmaceutical, chemical, engineering and food processing industries will be reduced by 3 percent to 10 percent, Abdul Razzak Dawood, Khan’s adviser on commerce, said in an interview to Bloomberg.
“That will help lower the import of finished goods, encourage local production and put the nation in a position to boost exports,” he said. “Pakistan had ridiculously high duties. The objective is to put Pakistan on par with other countries on trade taxes.”
Bloomberg said the proposal would be part of the federal government’s annual budget for the year starting July 1, by when it targets to achieve a growth rate of 4.8 percent. The nation forecast growth to be 3.9 percent this year after a rare contraction last year. The new budget is scheduled to be presented in the lower house of the parliament on June 11.
“Paring import taxes will be a huge policy shift for Pakistan, given more than 40 percent of its total tax revenue is generated from levies on inbound shipments,” Bloomberg said. “Khan’s government is seeking to end the nation’s reliance in recent years on foreign loans and bailouts, and instead boost industrial productivity and the share of exports in the economy.”
To that end, the administration will extend concessional long-term financing for exports and working capital financing to businesses in the next fiscal year, Dawood told the American publication.
The nation’s exports haven’t grown significantly in the past decade, averaging $23 billion annually. For the next financial year, the government hopes it will be higher than $25 billion.
Pakistan to cut taxes on imports of raw materials to boost growth
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Pakistan to cut taxes on imports of raw materials to boost growth
- Customs duties on input items needed by pharmaceutical, chemical, engineering, food processing industries to be reduced by 3 percent to 10 percent
- Proposal to be part of federal government’s annual budget for year starting July 1 by when it targets to achieve growth rate of 4.8 percent
Pakistan Navy rescues Sri Lankan sailor in Indian Ocean operation
- Navy evacuates critically ill crew member 1,500 kilometer off the coast
- Rescue follows earlier Pakistan Navy relief role after Sri Lanka cyclone
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Navy said on Saturday it had carried out a long-range medical evacuation in the Indian Ocean, rescuing a critically ill Sri Lankan crew member from a foreign-flagged vessel around 1,500 kilometers off Pakistan’s coast.
The operation was launched after Sri Lanka’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Center requested urgent medical assistance for a crew member aboard MV Grey Palm, an Indonesian-flagged cargo ship operating far from land, according to a statement issued by the navy’s public relations directorate.
“Pakistan Navy Ships TABUK and MOAWIN have successfully conducted medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) of a Sri Lankan national requiring urgent medical attention ... on the high seas at 800 Nautical Miles (approximately 1500 KM) off Pakistan’s coast,” the statement said.
The navy said it deployed its ships as a first responder, evacuated the patient along with an attendant and provided immediate treatment onboard before continuing coordination with Sri Lankan authorities.
“The successful medical evacuation is yet another testament to operational readiness and long-standing commitment of Pakistan for the safety of life at sea, irrespective of nationality,” the statement added.
The rescue follows Pakistan Navy’s involvement in humanitarian operations in Sri Lanka last month after a powerful cyclone triggered flooding and landslides that killed more than 470 people, according to Sri Lankan authorities.
During that mission, Pakistani naval personnel helped evacuate a family stranded on a rooftop for several days and delivered relief supplies to affected communities.
