APTMA praises govt policies for renewed investment

LAHORE: All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Chairman Syed Ali Ahsan has said that renewed investment in textiles is the result of restoration of competitiveness of the industry that now needs better cooperation across the value chain, a statement said on Friday.

The present government very aptly announced and implemented initiatives to ensure regionally competitive energy, both electricity and gas, to the exporting industry’s five zero-rated sectors. Consequently, viability, as well as confidence of the businessmen / industrialists and prospective investors has restored, he said. The industry across the value chain has started preparing a policy framework to achieve an export target of $50 billion in five years, which will attract huge investments and create 15 million direct job opportunities in line with the manifesto of the present government, he added.

Ahsan dispelled the impression that yarn exports are impacting the value-added industry, and said, yarn exports have declined 24 percent percent in quantity terms in March and the quantity/month exported is still 44 percent lower than the maximum export quantity of yarn at 60,000/month. More than 80 percent lower count yarn (below 20) being exported are not in demand of the domestic industry, he added. Today, the APTMA chairman said, the kind of yarn required by the domestic industry is available in abundance for their consumption. Any price increase in such yarn is linked with the international cotton prices. Cotton yarn import for re-export under all exemption schemes is already allowed. More so, around 10,000 tons/month yarn is being imported by the value-added industry, he said

Ahsan urged all the subsectors to learn coexistence for the betterment of their respective sectors, and said strengthening all sectors is a must in the larger interest of the textile industry.

Meanwhile, APTMA Patron-in-chief Gohar Ejaz said that Adviser Razak Dawood leads the way in this PTI government.

Major textile groups of Punjab; Saphire, Suraj, Kamal, US Apparrel, Interloop, Fazal Cloth Mills, Mahmood Textile, Ayesha Group, Bhanero Group, Ejaz Group, Kohinoor Mills, Sadaaqat Textile Ltd and others have decided almost after 10 years to invest $1 billion this year to avail the export-friendly policy of the government, especially the energy policy of 7.5 cents electricity and 6.50 dollars of gas for the zero-rated export sector and long-term finance availability by the State Bank of Pakistan.