FPCCI wants govt to put business on priority list

KARACHI: The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) on Saturday asked the government to put trade and industry on its priority list and make exportable products according to the global demand.

FPCCI President Anjum Nisar said low exports volume and widening trade deficit are chronicle issues, which should be resolved permanently.

“To achieve consistency in current account surplus for a long period without compromising industrial growth the government will have to focus on increasing exports,” Nisar said during a meeting with a trade delegation.

“Economic managers were boasting of their performance on current account surplus for the fourth consecutive months in October, rising to $382 million.”

FPCCI president said it should be kept in mind that the surplus emerged on the back of a sustained increase in remittances and a smaller trade deficit, as since the start of this fiscal year, the cumulative current account surplus has reached $1.2 billion, reversing the $1.4b billion deficit recorded in the same period last year.

Nisar said the country’s current account has been helped by a significant increase in remittances during the current fiscal year. So far, in the four-month period from July to October, total inflows of remittances have risen to $9.4 billion against $7.5 billion in the same period last year.

FPCCI said exportable items should be produced in accordance with the international demand. Several industries and sectors have been neglected.

“Export portfolio is marred by a lack of diversification, as few products are exported by some exporters to limited markets. So, a major enhancement in exports requires huge and wide structural reforms,” said Nisar.

FPCCI said decisions should be made in national interest, keeping aside the personal agenda.

It called for a holistic approach to speed up economic growth, as COVID-19 has adversely impacted the world’s economy and Pakistan’s trade and industrial sectors.

FPCCI said the government has already missed its annual export target for the first two years. For the current fiscal year, the export target was reset at $27.7 billion, requiring at least 6 percent growth.

“The government has to formulate long-term and consistent policies for the revival of industry and considerable improvement in exports, as contrary to regional countries, Pakistan’s exports have remained stagnant during the past 40 years, and unless attention is paid to all factors that hamper industrial and exports growth, the country might not be able to achieve desired results,” said Nisar. “Some of the impediments to industrial growth include cost of production, poor governance, obsolete technology, lower productivity, lack of competitiveness, supply constraints, and energy issues.”

FPCCI said a quick turnaround can come from increasing competitiveness of the existing export base and demand-led production of agricultural products, especially high value agriculture products. The long-term strategy needs structural reforms of the entire export sector, including high tech and innovative products, value-added exports commodities and market diversification towards unexplored markets like South America and Africa, it said.