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IMF to wait for ‘findings’ of mission in Pakistan for further engagement with Islamabad — spokesperson

IMF to wait for ‘findings’ of mission in Pakistan for further engagement with Islamabad — spokesperson
This handout photograph released by the Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance on May 13, 2024, shows Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb (L) meeting with a International Monetary Fund (IMF) review mission led by IMF mission official Nathan Porter (2R) at the Finance Ministry in Islamabad. (Photo courtesy: Ministry of Finance)
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Updated 17 May 2024
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IMF to wait for ‘findings’ of mission in Pakistan for further engagement with Islamabad — spokesperson

IMF to wait for ‘findings’ of mission in Pakistan for further engagement with Islamabad — spokesperson
  • An IMF team this week met top Pakistani officials in Islamabad to kickstart discussions on a fresh bailout
  • The cash-strapped South Asian country is expected to seek around $7-8 billion bailout from the global lender
Updated 17 May 2024
KHURSHID AHMED   
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KARACHI: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday it would wait for findings of its mission, currently holding talks in Islamabad, for further engagement with Pakistan, which seeks a fresh bailout from the global lender.
The South Asian country, which has been facing low foreign exchange reserves, currency devaluation and high inflation, last month completed a short-term $3 billion IMF program that helped stave off a sovereign default, but the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has stressed the need for a fresh, longer-term program.
While Islamabad has said it expects a staff-level agreement by July, both Pakistani and IMF officials have refrained from commenting on the size of the program. The South Asian country is expected to seek around $7-8 billion bailout from the global lender.
An IMF team, led by Mission Chief Nathan Porter, this week met Pakistan Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, central bank governor, chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue and other officials in Islamabad to kickstart discussions on the country’s further engagement with the lender.
“Right now, a mission team led by Nathan Porter, our Mission Chief, is meeting with the authorities this week to discuss the next phase of our engagement with Pakistan,” IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack said at a press briefing on Thursday, when asked about the status of talks with Pakistan.
“Given that there is a mission on the ground, we will wait for them to complete their work and we will communicate the findings of the mission in due course.”
Pakistan narrowly averted a default last summer and its $350 billion economy has slightly stabilized after the completion of the last IMF program, with inflation coming down to around 17 percent in April from a record high of 38 percent in May last year.
However, the South Asian country is still dealing with a high fiscal shortfall and while it has controlled its external account deficit through import control mechanisms, it has come at the expense of stagnating growth, which is expected to be around 2 percent this year, compared to negative growth last year.
Wall Street Bank Citi expects Pakistan to reach an agreement with the IMF of up to $8 billion program by end-July, and recommends going long on the country’s 2027 international bond.
“While longer-term challenges pertain, we see several positive catalysts supporting the Eurobonds,” Nikola Apostolov at Citi wrote in a note to clients.
“First, a larger and longer IMF EFF (Extended Fund Facility) program could be finalized by July – possibly a $7-8 billion 4-year program and secondly and a possible inflow of Saudi investments,” Apostolov said after a team from Citi visited Pakistan and met policymakers, including Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
Citi said it expected Pakistan’s international 2027 bond to offer a sweet spot to investors with sufficient liquidity and large upside as risks of default dissipate further.

Topics: Pakistan IMF Talks Pakistan IMF IMF bailout IMF IMF Pakistan

Pakistan’s top court judges question relief to Imran Khan’s party in reserved seats verdict

Pakistan’s top court judges question relief to Imran Khan’s party in reserved seats verdict
Updated 28 sec ago
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Pakistan’s top court judges question relief to Imran Khan’s party in reserved seats verdict

Pakistan’s top court judges question relief to Imran Khan’s party in reserved seats verdict
  • Justices Amin Uddin Khan and Naeem Akhtar Afghan were part of the bench but diverged from majority verdict
  • They point out Khan’s PTI party was not claiming the reserved seats in a detailed, 29-page dissenting note
Updated 28 sec ago
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Two Pakistani top court judges on Saturday questioned the majority verdict in a case involving parliamentary reserved seats, in which former prime minister Imran Khan’s political party was granted relief, saying the judgment had ignored “all rules of procedure.”
Justices Amin Uddin Khan and Naeem Akhtar Afghan, who were part of the Supreme Court bench that adjudicated the matter, diverged from the majority verdict in a short order before issuing a 29-page note detailing the legal reasons for their differing view.
The reserved seats case came up for hearing because Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party candidates had to contest the February 8 national polls as independents after being deprived of its symbol in a legal battle for not holding proper intraparty polls.
The PTI-backed candidates won the most seats, though the election commission ruled they were not entitled to reserved parliamentary seats for women and minorities, as these were meant only for political parties.
However, the apex court issued a different verdict on July 12, providing relief to Khan’s party.
“The majority judgment ignores all rules of procedure, substantive provisions of law and the Constitution,” the two judges wrote in their dissenting note.
The petitions for the seats were filed by the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), which the PTI-backed candidates had joined after winning the general seats since their party’s political identity was not recognized.
“Relief cannot be granted to the PTI as PTI was not before the Court nor tried to become a party before the ECP, High Court and before this Court nor was claiming the reserved seats, which were in issue in the instant litigation,” the dissenting note added.
The reserved seats for women and minorities in Pakistan’s national and provincial assemblies are to ensure greater political inclusion.
They are allocated to various political factions on a proportional basis after considering the number of general seats won by them during elections.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) refused to allocate these seats to PTI and SIC on technical grounds, instead distributing them among other parties mostly belonging to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ruling coalition.
The government expressed its reservations over the Supreme Court’s majority verdict.
It has also been working on a parliamentary legislation to prevent its implementation in PTI’s favor.

Topics: Sunni Ittehad Council Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party Supreme Court of Pakistan PTI reserved seats

Balochistan ethnic rights protests continue despite ‘deal’ with government

Balochistan ethnic rights protests continue despite ‘deal’ with government
Updated 03 August 2024
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Balochistan ethnic rights protests continue despite ‘deal’ with government

Balochistan ethnic rights protests continue despite ‘deal’ with government
  • Government blames the protesters for not honoring the agreement, while they complain of an intensifying crackdown
  • Police in Karachi arrested over 35 Baloch protesters, as officials demanded an end to sit-ins across Balochistan
Updated 03 August 2024
SAADULLAH AKHTER

QUETTA: An ethnic Baloch rights group that has been protesting in many districts of Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province continued its sit-ins for the eighth consecutive day on Saturday, despite a written agreement reached between its leaders and government officials about two days ago.
The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) held a protest gathering last week in the Pakistani port city of Gwadar against alleged human rights abuses, extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances in Balochistan, which rights activists and the families of victims blame on Pakistani security forces. The government and security agencies deny involvement.
Gwadar is the hub of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which has experienced road blockades and a complete Internet shutdown during the protest, cutting it off from the rest of the country.
The provincial administration said it accepted the protesters’ demands, asking the authorities to release the detained BYC members, resume Internet and mobile services, remove highway blockades, quash police cases against their leadership and register cases against paramilitary soldiers who allegedly shot at the demonstrators.
“The government is unable to understand that despite signing a written agreement, the Baloch Yakjehti Committee has not called off protests in Balochistan and is not honoring the deal,” Assistant Commissioner Gwadar Jawad Ahmed Zehri told Arab News.

Activists and supporters of Baloch Yakjehti Committee stage protest against alleged human rights violations and heavy deployment of security forces in Balochistan in Panjgur district on August 3, 2024. (Photo Courtesy: BYC)

“The government has started acting on their demands and released 70-plus arrested protesters only in Gwadar,” he continued. “It has also directed the police to release all the detained protesters since July 24 and quash FIRs [first information reports] against the group’s leadership and members.”
BYC leaders and provincial officials confirm that over a dozen people who were en route to Gwadar to attend the demonstration were injured in clashes with paramilitary personnel in Balochistan’s Mastung district. BYC says one person was also killed in the violence, while officials say they are investigating the claim.
Security forces have also complained of being targeted by the demonstrators, saying it led to the death of a soldier.
Speaking to Arab News, Sadia Baloch, a BYC member, described the deal with the government as a “joke,” accusing the authorities of intensifying their crackdown against the protesters.
“If the government were serious about addressing the issue peacefully, it would not have targeted the demonstrators,” she said. “Dozens of our members have been arrested in Karachi and Nushki.”

Activists and supporters of Baloch Yakjehti Committee stage protest against alleged human rights violations and heavy deployment of security forces in Balochistan in Panjgur district on August 3, 2024. (Photo Courtesy: BYC)

Police in Pakistan’s southeastern province of Sindh arrested over 35 Baloch activists in Karachi from the Arts Council roundabout and the press club building.
It also cracked down on BYC activists in Nushki in Balochistan, who later blocked a key Pak-Iran trade route in protest.
Beberg Baloch, a senior group leader, said protests would continue across the province until the government gets serious about fulfilling the group’s demands.
“The government has been claiming that all BYC demands have been met after successful talks,” he said while speaking to Arab News. “So, why are the Internet and mobile phone services still suspended in Gwadar and the highways are not opened for the smooth flow of traffic?”

Activists and supporters of Baloch Yakjehti Committee stage protest against alleged human rights violations and heavy deployment of security forces in Balochistan in Panjgur district on August 3, 2024. (Photo Courtesy: BYC)

 

Topics: Baloch Yakjehti Committee Naushki Mastung Gawadar Gawadar protests

Pakistani religio-political party expands anti-inflation sit-in to Karachi after stalled talks with government

Pakistani religio-political party expands anti-inflation sit-in to Karachi after stalled talks with government
Updated 49 min 9 sec ago
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Pakistani religio-political party expands anti-inflation sit-in to Karachi after stalled talks with government

Pakistani religio-political party expands anti-inflation sit-in to Karachi after stalled talks with government
  • Thousands of Jamaat-e-Islami supporters have already been demonstrating against rising cost of living in Rawalpindi
  • The party’s Karachi chapter began its sit-in in front of the Governor House in the Pakistani port city on Saturday
Updated 49 min 9 sec ago
NAIMAT KHAN

KARACHI: A Pakistani religio-political party protesting against the rising cost of living due to increased power tariffs and additional taxes in the federal budget expanded its sit-in to southern Karachi port city on Saturday, where people camped in front of the Governor House for an indefinite period.
Thousands of supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) started a protest demonstration last month in Pakistan’s garrison city of Rawalpindi, gathering at the historic Liaqat Bagh and demanding that the government review stringent economic measures that have financially burdened the people.
Federal Minister for Information Attaullah Tarar announced the government had formed a committee to negotiate with the protesters and address their legitimate demands, though the talks remained inconclusive, prompting JI chief Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman to expand the sit-in to Karachi.
JI was scheduled to implement its decision on Wednesday but deferred it after the assassination of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh in an attack believed to have been carried out by Israel in Tehran.
“Today’s protest is against inflation,” Monem Zafar Khan, the party’s Karachi head leading the protest, told Arab News. “It is against the oppressive billing practices of independent power producers and K-Electric, and the plundering of the public’s pockets that we will not accept under any circumstances.”
“Heavy taxes have been imposed on salaried individuals, taxes have been levied on children’s milk and essential goods are also being taxed,” he added. “These are the issues we have come out to protest today.”
The party’s information secretary, Zahid Askari, described Karachi’s sit-in as a continuation of Rawalpindi’s protest, adding that JI would continue until all issues raised by its leadership were resolved.
“Hafiz [Naeem-ur-Rehman] Sahib is leading the protest in Rawalpindi over the issues facing this nation, demanding an end to the oppression inflicted on the Pakistani people [by the government] and the removal of the new taxes imposed on salaried individuals,” he said.
“Our protest in Karachi is a continuation of the effort,” he added. “This protest will last until our demands are met.”

Topics: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Islamabad Protest karachi protest Inflation inflation in Pakistan

Pakistan to hold final auction for national air carrier in October — official

Pakistan to hold final auction for national air carrier in October — official
Updated 03 August 2024
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Pakistan to hold final auction for national air carrier in October — official

Pakistan to hold final auction for national air carrier in October — official
  • Government says all issues related to PIA privatization, including outstanding commercial loans, will be resolved
  • The national air carrier is among 88 state-owned enterprises that made collective losses of $2.61 billion in FY22
Updated 03 August 2024
Aamir Saeed

ISLAMABAD: The government is set to hold a final auction for the state-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) in the first week of October, an official said on Saturday, adding all issues related to the privatization of the national air carrier, including outstanding commercial loans, would be resolved within a couple of weeks.
The government announced in June it had selected six companies qualified to bid for PIA out of a pool of eight after receiving expressions of interest. Pakistan plans to sell more than 51 percent of its stake in the loss-making airline as part of the economic reforms suggested by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a fresh $7 billion loan program.
However, the country’s central bank refused earlier this week to grant a waiver or exemption to prospective buyers regarding PIA’s commercial bank loans of Rs268 billion ($971.1 million) and other financial guarantees in dollar terms, a development viewed as a setback to the privatization bid.
“It has been mutually decided with the pre-qualified bidders to hold final auction for the PIA in first week of October,” Dr. Ahsan Ishaq, a privatization ministry spokesperson, told Arab News. “We have been in touch with the central bank to resolve the issue regarding all outstanding commercial loans of the national carrier before its final bid.”
According to the ministry, the pre-qualified bidders for PIA include Air Blue, Arif Habib Corporation, Blue World City, Fly Jinnah, Pak Ethanol (Pvt) Consortium and YB Holdings Consortium.
The government initially planned to finalize the deal on the country’s Independence Day on August 14, but it was delayed following requests from bidders who were waiting for the airline’s latest audited accounts, aircraft lease agreements and clarity on flights to Europe, which are currently banned.
Official data available with Arab News reveal there are 88 commercially operated state-owned enterprises in Pakistan, with their collective losses reaching Rs730.258 billion ($2.61 billion) in the fiscal year 2022 (FY22).
In its five-year privatization plan ending in 2029, the government has approved 24 state-owned enterprises for sale, including PIA.
“This issue of the loans will be resolved in a couple of weeks,” Ishaq said. “Even if this issue of the commercial loans is not resolved, the final bidder may adjust this amount in its offer.”
The top ten loss-making Pakistani entities, including PIA with Rs97.5 billion, the National Highways Authority at Rs168.5 billion and the Peshawar Electric Supply Company Limited with Rs102.2 billion, accounted for a cumulative loss of Rs650.197 billion ($2.33 billion) in FY22, according to official data.
In contrast, the remaining enterprises reported combined losses of Rs80 billion ($286 million) during the same fiscal year.
Dr. Ishaq informed PIA’s cumulative losses alone had surpassed Rs800 billion ($2.86 billion), with the total asset valuation of the airline standing at approximately Rs160 billion ($572 million).
He said the government had categorized the entities to be privatized into first, second and third phases over five years, including PIA, First Women Bank, House Building Finance Corporation and various power generation and distribution companies.
“The government is fully focused on privatizing all state-owned enterprises to eliminate billions of rupees in annual losses,” he added. “Privatization is a time-consuming and complex process, but we are pursuing it diligently.”

Topics: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) PIA privatization

Pakistan and Turkish navies hold expert-level talks to discuss joint operations

Pakistan and Turkish navies hold expert-level talks to discuss joint operations
Updated 03 August 2024
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Pakistan and Turkish navies hold expert-level talks to discuss joint operations

Pakistan and Turkish navies hold expert-level talks to discuss joint operations
  • Turkiye is building fast and highly maneuverable corvette ships for Pakistan, typically used for coastal defense
  • A top Turkish official visits Pakistan’s Naval Headquarters, praises its role in the maritime security of the region
Updated 03 August 2024
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan and Turkish navies held staff-level expert talks on Saturday, according to an official statement, to discuss matters of professional interest and cooperation.
The two naval forces have a robust and evolving relationship, particularly in defense production and military exercises.
Turkiye is building state-of-the-art corvette ships for Pakistan, which are fast and highly maneuverable vessels typically used for coastal defense, patrol and escort missions.
Additionally, the two navies engage in joint military exercises, exchange expertise and collaborate at the operational level, underscoring strong military ties.
“Chief of Staff of the Turkish Naval Forces, Vice Admiral Ibrahim Ozdem, visited Naval Headquarters in Islamabad,” said the military’s media wing, Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR), in a statement, adding he was received by Vice Admiral Ovais Ahmed Bilgrami.
“The sixth staff-level expert talks between the Pakistan Navy and Turkish Navy were held,” it added. “During the talks, extensive discussions were held on joint operations, training and technical fields.”
The visiting Turkish official praised the Pakistan Navy’s efforts in maritime security in the region.
A day earlier, Pakistani and Turkish naval ships have conducted coordinated patrol and naval drills in the North Arabian Sea to enhance interoperability between the two forces.

Topics: Pakistan Navy Pakistan Turkey Ties

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