DUBAI: Finance Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar late Wednesday afternoon spoke to media here, alongside officials from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), following discussions with the global organisation.
Commenting on the latest statistics – for the month of March 2017, Dar said that inflation figures turned out to be as expected.
“Inflation for March 2017 was in order, and, as per the guidance, came out at 4.60 percent,†said the Finance Minister. He added that the figure was recorded at 4.01 percent for the 9-month period from July 2016 to March 2017.
Interestingly, import of foreign machinery expanded more than 40% in the same time period, noted Dar, highlighting “higher expectation of industrial activity, which, in turn, will help economic growth.â€
According to Dar, there was an improvement in various major industrial sectors, including cement, steel, pharmaceuticals, automotive, paper, and electronics, as well. Credit expenses of the private sector, on the other hand, totalled at Rs. 393 billion in the first nine months of this fiscal year.
GDP growth was registered at 4.70 percent, primarily on the back of better performance in the agricultural sector – mainly comprising cotton, sugar, maize, and wheat – which rebounded into greener pastures.
Dar also mentioned that interventions were made via the Finance Bill during 2016-17.
With regard to the Cabinet’s Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), the Finance Minister mentioned that the government has made efforts to enhance linkages and communication with farmers, especially in terms of lending support to farmers through the pre-set support price.
