Lahore: The Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) former chairman Irfan Iqbal Sheikh has asked the government to take measures to further squeeze country’s trade deficit which slightly fell to $8.86 billion in first quarter of current fiscal from the $9.01 billion reported in corresponding period of last fiscal.
The overall trade deficit contracted by 1.61 percent in July-September 2018 period of Fiscal Year 2018-19 (FY19) as compared to the same period of FY18.
Irfan Iqbal Sheikh said that the Pakistani rupee continued its downward slide against the US dollar, hitting the all-time low of Rs134 against the green back in the inter-bank market. It indicates that the country is once again marching towards another huge trade deficit, which would further jack up the current account deficit.
Chairman PIAF Mian Nauman Kabir also urged the government to come up with better trade policy for trade and industry to bring down the gap of trade deficit. Trade policy 2018-23 which is expected to be released in the current month, to achieve its target its very much necessary to curtail the energy prices for industry so that cost of doing business may be reduced leading to increasing the exports. It is necessary to have SWOT analysis of previous issued policies and keeping in mind the weaknesses, flaws and negative effects, new trade policy 2018-23 be issued, Mian Nauman Kabir added.
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