KARACHI: Governor State Bank of Pakistan, Tariq Bajwa showed hope that issues regarding current account deficit will be resolved in upcoming two years. He was addressing to a meeting held at Korangi Association of Trade & Industry (KATI). On this occasion President of KATI Tariq Malik, Senior Vice President Salman Aslam, Vice President Junaid Naqi, Former Presidents of KATI Masood Naqi, Johar Qandhari, Farhan-ur-Rehman, Nadeem Khan, and others also expressed their views, says a Press release.
President KATI Tariq Malik welcomed the governor SBP and briefed him about Kornagi Industrial Area. He said that the only solution to unemployment is to promote SMEs sector, SBP should take measures to uplift the sector through easy landing policies. Former President KATI Masood Naqi said Industrialists and traders faces many issues with commercial banks, which they refers to SBP, there should be a mechanism for direct communication between the SBP and the business community. SVP KATI Salman Aslam said that most of SMEs preferred Islamic Banks for financing; SBP should craft policies and products keeping this fact in viewl.
According to details Governor State Bank Tariq Bajwa said that during previous years GDB growth increased more than 5 pc but imports has a larger chunk in it , this is the reason the reason that our foreign reserves facing pressure. He told that trade deficit has reached to USD 36 billion and for reserves has shrunken to USD 11 million.
He showed the hope that current account deficit issues will resolve in upcoming two years. He told that SMEs sector shares 70 pc of economy, the sector also has 17 pc share from Commercial Banks landing back in 2006-7 but now it has dropped to 8 pc. “SBP has directed the commercial banks to bring back the ration of their landing to SMEs on previous pc and created many products for the sector too” he added. He told that SBP has launched an awareness program regarding its products for SMEs and 100 events for this purpose have been planned.
Bajwa said that unnecessary imports burdened our reserves, “we claims to be an agricultural country but annual food imports of Pakistan have reached to USD 5 billion, we have to change this trend” he noted. Governor SBP told that Pakistan is short of 1 million housing units, if this issue wouldn’t get due attention the difference would be more widened.
He said that according to a survey Islamic Banking is priority option for the 79pc SMEs but they weren’t opting financing on the similar level. He also told that Pakistani exports get bit higher 0.65 pc in the month of June and but much more is needed.