profit.com.pk Saturday, 04 February, 2012

Bulls lift index to week-high volume Page 03

scePTIcs smell a “pre-poll sophisticatedrigging” on the part of politico-judiciallyembattled Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), asthe cash-strapped federal government has

almost completed its homework to write off billionsof rupees worth of bank loans of the affluent millowners and traders in the flood-affected sindh andBalochistan provinces.Whereas some conspiracy theorists, includingbankers, dub the move as a “new way of rigging” theupcoming general elections, others deem it an“ideal case” for being referred to the Write-offcommission formed by the supreme court to probefacts behind the billions of rupees bank worth ofloans the country’s influential figures had gotwritten off from the banks during 1971-2010.state Bank of Pakistan (sBP), on January 20 directivesof the federal government, has asked at least fiveprominent banks for detail on the position and volumeof outstanding loans owed to them by the rice millersand traders, related to small and Medium enterprises

(sMes) of the calamity-hit areas of thetwo provinces. The banks including,National Bank of Pakistan, McBBank, Bank Al-Falah, Allied Bank and

sMe Bank, have to provide therequired data up to February 3.

The official documents, available withPakistan Today, reveal that the move was

backed by the economic coordinationcommittee of the federal cabinet that, in line with

a January 2 summary of the finance division, hasdecided that the federal government would pick up 50

per cent of the outstanding loans of the millers andtraders. These loans to be picked up by the otherwisefunds-starved federal government also include themark-up on the borrowed money. “Necessary budgetaryprovision may be made,” reads a letter issued to thecentral bank by the finance division on January 20. The

state Bank, in its November 02 (2010) circular, said theresource-constrained government had also allocated rs10 billion for a refinance scheme for the revival ofsMes and agricultural activities in flood affected areas.The central bank has been asked to monitor thedispensation process and that the facility is notextended to those millers and traders who weredefaulters of any prior bank loan.seemingly pro-trade and business, the developmenthas raised eyebrows in the concerned quartersespecially the banking industry which is alreadyplagued with an all-time-high Non-Performing Loansof over rs 620 billion. The analysts smell a rat in thepolitical government’s intention because of the factthat the facility is targeted at the rich mill owners andtraders instead of poor farmers, the real affectees.Also, question arises that why the presentdemocratically-elected government took two years inaddressing the plight of 2010-flood affectess on the eveof general elections.“This would be materialized at the cost of governmentand private banks which must brace themselves for afinancial impact of rs 3 to rs 4 billion at the end of theday,” claimed a banker, requesting anonymity. The banker said the banks were already under fire inthe apex court for writing off loans of billions over thepast four decades. “The said 50 per cent would bereturned after budgetary allocation that would nothappen before June 2012,” the banker said.Another banker recalled that it was last year when thebanks had written off more than rs 400 million ofloans in the war-ravaged Khyber-Pakhtunkhwaprovince. “such decisions have all the potential to hurtthose banks that are extending progressive agricultureloans,” the banker added. A political–economistclaimed that underlying motives of the fresh loan write-offs were to garner political support from influentialfigures living in interior sindh and Balochistanprovince. “It’s a novel way to rig the forthcoming(general) polls and the chief election commissionershould take notice of this pre-poll sophisticated riggingat the cost of banking sector,” the analyst commented.

Federal govt finds resourcesto pick up bank loansg Bankers feel uneasy as SBP asks five banks for detail of loans owed by traders, millers

KARACHI

STAFF REPORT

P roducers of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)have shifted the burden of levy on LPG to the60 million consumers, raising its prices byrs15,850 to a record rs109,700 per ton

Friday. chairman of FPccI standing committee onLPG and All Pakistan LPG distributors Association(APLdA) Abdul Hadi Khan, while expressing hisdisappointment over this rise, said the rise of rs15,850included the levy of rs11,400 per ton on LPG, whichmeant for producers and not consumers. This hasenhanced domestic prices by rs15 to rs145-165 perkilo, 11.8 kilo cylinder by rs188 to rs1,652 and 45.4 kgcylinder by rs726 to rs6,356, he added. Hevehemently criticised the government for not stoppingthe producers from passing on LPG levy to consumers,thus raising its prices to the highest ever in country’shistory. This will have a negative impact on LPG salesand making this fuel out of the reach of commonconsumers, he observed. Hadi alleged that thegovernment has let local producers to raise LPG priceat their own will to drop a price bomb on theconsumers who were already burdened withunprecedented price hike in the country. Hadi saidthat he has convened an emergency meeting of over6,000 distributors and other stakeholders to devise aline of action against this price rise and transfer of LPGlevy to consumers. He further alleged that local

producers have reduced the daily productionto 1,100 to 1,200 ton since last seven months,while some producers were planning to go forproduction shut down in the mid of March tofurther shrink LPG production to 600 to 700.“This will enable the non-representativestakeholders to take advantage of big gapbetween the demand and supply ofLPG and resort toprofiteering”, he noted.Hadi urged the PetroleumMinister to take effectivemeasures to bring downLPG prices to a reasonablelevel and provide relief to60 million consumers andsave jobs of thousands ofpeople attached to thisindustry. He said localproduction cost of LPGwas rs13,000 to rs14,000per ton while it was beingsold at rs109,700 per ton.He underlined the needfor developing a pricemechanism to bring downLPG price in the countryand enforce government’swrit to save this sectorfrom collapse.

LPG prices atrecord high,producers pass on tax to consumers ISLAMABAD: Alleging OGRA was tactfully al-

lowing the LPG producers and marketing com-

panies to hike LPG prices, the LPGDA

announced protest strike on February 15. Chair-

man LPGDA Irfan Khokhar said producers have

illegally increased prices by Rs16 per kg without

any OGRA notification, which has jacked up

prices of domestic cylinder by Rs186 and com-

mercial cylinder by Rs716. He said the increase

was made possible due to the involvement of

OGRA officials who have not bothered to take

any action against the producers. He said asso-

ciation will surround OGRA offices on February

15 in Islamabad. LPG producers OGDCL and

PARCOand Pakistan Petroleum Limited produce

60pc of the output. All the producers have in-

creased their prices by Rs15,846 to Rs109,703

per ton. They have attributed the hike in do-

mestic prices to increased international prices

of LPG, as government has linked domestic pro-

duction price with Aramco Saudi Arabia prices.

PARCO produces 348 tons per day, OGDCL 125

tons, PPL 155 tons and PRL 15 tons. Govern-

ment had imposed petroleum levy at Rs 11,486

per ton on locally produced LPG on January 16.

The step was envisioned to bring prices of do-

mestically produced LPG at par with interna-

tional prices to promote imports. However, to

avoid public ire government has asked the

companies to absorb the impact themselves.

This would cause them a loss of more than

Rs190 million per month. STAFF REPORT

LPG distributors announce protest

KARACHI

ISMAIL DILAWAR

Infographic by Babur Saghir

PDF Profit_Layout 1 2/3/2012 10:22 PM Page 1

news02Saturday, 04 February, 2012

Chairman ‘Save Water Save Pakistan’ wants judicial inquiry LAHORE: chairman of save Water save Pakistan Forumand ex chief Advisor of united Nations engineer BashirAhmed Malik has appealed to the chief Justice of Pakistanto order a judicial inquiry commission headed by asupreme court Judge including a chief engineer of PunjabIrrigation department experienced in the operation ofcanal networks as a technical member and also a lawyerwell versed in international law particularly of riparianwater rights, to inquire the matter of deliberate negligenceof duty by Pakistan’s Indus Water commissioner JamaatAli shah who escaped to canada despite his name being onthe exit control List. He held a vital post regarding theimplementation of Indus Water Treaty. A probe also foundhim guilty of having failed to take effective steps againstthe construction of Nimoo Bazgo dam on the Indus byIndia in occupied Kashmir in infringement of the Treaty.India has been exploiting IWT as a weapon of water waragainst Pakistan by building dams and other works on ourWestern rivers; the chenab, Jhelum and the Indus inflagrant violation of the Treaty. STAFF REPORT

National Savings portfolio doubles to Rs 2000bISLAMABAD: director General of the centraldirectorate of National savings (cdNs) Zafar M. sheikhsaid on Friday that the investment portfolio in the nationalsaving schemes has doubled to rs 2,000 billion during lastfour years. Talking to reporters after launching new prizebonds of rs 25,000 denomination, he said that the savingtarget of rs187 billion set for the current fiscal year wouldbe achieved as already 97 per cent target has been met tillJanuary 2012. “so far investments have reached to rs 104billion,” he added. He said the new prize bond waslaunched to plug the gap between rs 15,000 and rs40,000 prize bonds. The new bond is estimated to attractan investment of rs 4 billion to rs 8 billion during thecurrent fiscal year. It will also help in reducing thecurrency circulation. The total investment in differentdenomination of bonds is rs 294 billion. STAFF REPORT

‘WTO waiver shouldn’t be treated as precedent’KARACHI: Members of World Trade organization(WTo) who were previously opposing the europeanunion’s trade concession to Pakistan have, whileapproving the package, stressed that the waiver of WTorules should not be treated as a precedent. The eurequest for duty concession to Pakistan on 75 selecteditems through waiving rules of the internationalorganization, however, were approved by the opposingmembers at WTo saying that they were now able toagree to the waiver request after consultations with theeu and Pakistan. However, they stressed “the waivershould not be treated as a precedent,” a statement ofWTo said. Accordingly, saudi Arabia called on membersto support the eu request. Brazil said that after intensiveconsultations with the eu, and also with privateindustry, it could now accept the waiver. Indonesia saidit could now go along with the waiver. Bangladesh saidthat it is heavily dependent on textile exports, especiallyto the eu, but nevertheless view this as an exceptionalcircumstance. Argentina said the revised eu requestallayed its concerns, and expressed solidarity withPakistan. Peru noted the exceptional nature of therequest. The eu thanked members for their co-operation, adding that this showed the organization canmove forward on trade matters. Pakistan expressedgratitude to members who are standing by in times ofneed and pain. STAFF REPORT

‘Record agriculture produce in Punjab’LAHORE: Provincial Minister for Agriculture MalikAhmad Ali Aulakh has said that due to special interesttaken by chief Minister Punjab Muhammad shahbazsharif and provision of maximum facilities to the farmers,a record production of wheat, rice, maize, potato andsugarcane has been achieved in the province. He wastalking to media-men, here today. He said that wheatproduction which was one crore 56 lakh tons in 2007-08,rose to one crore 84 lakh tons in 2008-09 and one crore 79lakh tons in 2009-2010, reached the figure of one crore 90lakh tons in 2010-11 which is a record in the history of theprovince. similarly, the rice production which was 32 lakh86 thousand tons in 2007-08 rose to 36 lakh 43 thousandtons in 2008-09 reached the record level of 37 lakh 13thousand tons in 2009-10. In 2010-11, 33 lakh 84thousand tons rice was produced. A record production offour crore 28 lakh tons sugarcane has been achieved in2011-12. He further said that a record production of 29lakh 59 thousand tons maize and 33 lakh 40 thousand tonspotato was achieved in 2010-11. In reply to a question, theAgriculture Minister said that due to suspension of supplyof gas to urea factories, a crisis was created and the ureaprice which was rs.850 per bag last year rose to rs. 1800per bag while dAP was sold at 4100 to 4200 rupees perbag. He said that despite repeated reminders of Punjabgovernment, the federal government started late import offertilizer which resulted in a severe shortage of urea in thecountry. He said that during rabi 2011-12 in the months ofoctober, November, december and January, only 15 lakh11 thousand tons urea remained available as compared tothe total need of 19 lakh tons while three lakh 87 thousandtons dAP remained available as compared to the totalrequirement of five lakh 59 thousand tons. STAFF REPORT

LAHORE

STAFF REPORT

P rIMe Minister syed Yousaf raza Gillani in-augurated the country’s first private sectorrun train, ‘Pak Business express’, which leftLahore railways station for Karachi at

03:30 pm on Friday. The first Pak Business expresswas carrying around 250 passengers, though it hadnine luxury wagons having capacity of 500 passengers.

Addressing the inaugural ceremony held at La-hore railways station, Gillani underscored, “It is thelandmark example of public private partnership in thehistory of Pakistan railways. This deluxe train serviceis equipped with the state of the art facilities, compat-ible with modern day’s demand of businessmen trav-eling between Lahore and Karachi. The train will setnew standards for the public sector that will improveits level of performance on sustainable basis.”

He said that it was the first train, which was beingrun on public private partnership mode, which wouldgive Pakistan railways an insight about the function-ing and potential of private sector. He said that thegovernment was already well aware of the private sec-tor’s potential and its capacity as an engine of eco-nomic growth. “Keeping this in mind, public sectormonopoly is being increasingly outsourced to providebetter services to the public, while protecting and en-

hancing revenues forthe state at

the same time,” he stressed. Prime minister said thathe was confident that this partnership would infusenew spirit in providing efficient service to passengersand it would be instrumental in revival of Pakistanrailways. He said that he was delighted to witness thatPakistan railways’ administration had fulfill the longawaited demand of Lahore chamber of commerceand Industry (LccI) for an express train connectingLahore and Karachi. Gillani also appreciated the ini-tiative of M/s Four Brothers, who had pledged to in-vest a minimum of rs 225 million for the commercialmanagement and passenger facilitation for the Busi-ness express. He underlined that the initiative takentoday would provide empathies to induct corporateculture not only in the Pakistan railways, but also inother sectors of the economy. “We hope that we willhave a beautiful interaction between the private sec-tor and the government for future cooperation inother domains of railways activities, especially thefreight sector, and perhaps also the manufacturing ofrailways machinery,” he maintained.

He indicated that Pakistan railways was also onthe verge of track access regime, which would pro-vide a unique opportunity to private sector to availuntapped capacity on the railways network by im-porting locomotives, freight wagons and moving fleetacross the country. It would relief pressure on mainhighways and also improve the efficient transporta-tion of the goods in the country, he added.

Prime minister said, “Being an ex-ministerfor railways, Pakistan

r a i l -

ways is very close to my heart. during the recentpast, I have been reviewing the progress of railwayswith a view of putting it back on track. However, Ican’t promise an overnight solution but the wheelsare already in motion and we will succeed in pro-viding a service of reasonable quality”.

He said that he was cognisant of all constraints.“railways is facing acute shortage of locomotives, de-pleting rolling stock and slow pace of rehabilitationand upgradation of railways infrastructure. In thepresent scenario, revival of the railways depends in ef-fectively utilising its available potential and resources”.It could best be done through greater collaboration be-tween the public and private sectors, he stressed.

He appreciated the contribution of Pakistan rail-ways workers and all departments associated with thisventure to make this enterprise a success. “I am surethat all employees of Pakistan railways will supportthe venture and prove that public private partnershipis the key to economic growth for the future”, he said.

Prime minister said, “This also demonstrates thatthe democratic government is the key to have the par-ticipation of private business in sectors that had in thepast remained strictly within the public domain. Astrategy that marked the domination of the publicsector organisation without participation of the pri-vate sector hampered the growth in the past. How-ever, We are now in the process of removing all

barriers in moving towards economicprosperity hand in hand with the

private sector”.

PM inaugurates first Business Express

POL prices doublein four years

FAISALABAD

FARAKH SHAHZAD

WITH ninety per centincrease in petroleumprices in last four years

and substantial increases inelectricity cost and gas prices, themanufacturing cost of exportablegoods has increased substantiallymaking Pakistani exportsuncompetitive at the internationallevel. This is a windfall opportunityfor our rivals, India, Bangladesh andchina to capture our hard wonmarkets. A large number of localindustrialists are convinced that therecent petroleum increase is an anti-industrial decision at a time whenthe economic activities are shrinkingdue to multiple factors and this hikewill produce overall damagingeffects on the economy. This drasticincrease in the prices of petroleumproducts will not only affect theindustrial productivity, but will alsoput an adverse impact on thecountry’s overall economy. due tomultiple increases in tariffs ofelectricity and gas, productivity ofindustries have also been affectedand the recent hike will directlyaffect the industrial sector. due torising cost of production in Pakistan,foreign investors are moving to othercountries of the region. current stateof economy demands thatgovernment should create conduciveenvironment for better growth ofeconomic activities. However, suchanti-business decisions will reduceindustrial and commercial activitiesultimately decreasing tax revenue forthe government making alreadyfragile economy further weakened.

Banks’ excess liquidity reservescross Rs28b again

KARACHI

ISMAIL DILAWAR

AFTer seeing a rare but tangibleslump of 70pc or rs49b lastweek, the commercial banks’

excess cash reserves (ecrs) onceagain are moving northward. sBPreported that during the week, rangingfrom January 20 to 26, the banks’excess liquidity ballooned by 37pc tors28.885b against rs21.140b the banksheld in the preceding week. The centralbank warns that the excess cashholdings by the commercial and Islamicbanks, which are pocketing handsomeamounts through investing massively inthe risk-free and heavily-weightedgovernment securities including MTBs,Pakistan Investment Bonds and Ijarasukuk, adversely impacts smoothfunctioning of the country’s existinginterest rate corridor. A breakup,reported by the central bank, shows thatduring the week under review theconventional and shariah-compliantbanks cumulatively possessed excesscash worth 23.45b and rs5.435b,respectively. sBP calculated theconventional banks’ daily averageexcess cash collection at rs 3.35b whilethat of their competitors in Islamicbanks stood at rs 776m. A daily reviewshows that the banks raised additionalliquidity worth rs 4.71b on Jan 20, 21and 22, rs 5.027b on Jan 23, rs 7.749bon Jan 24, rs 12.817b on Jan 25 andnegative rs 10.863b on Jan 26. Theseamounts also include the pre-matureencashment the banks reported to thestate Bank in line with its july 2006’sBsd circular No 09.

KARACHISTAFF REPORT

D esPITe tremendouspotential, the cementmanufacturing sectorcontinues to operate

at much lower levels than itsinstalled capacity and faces hugelosses due to sharp increase ininput cost. “It is a seriouschallenge for the cement industryand a continuous threat for itssurvival”, an insider said, addingthat the sharp increase in inputcost has enhanced challenges forthe cement sector and alsoaffected country’s exportscausing huge losses to nationalexchequer in terms of foreignexchange earning. The capacityutilization of cement sector hasdropped to its lowest level at69.67 per cent in the first twoquarters of the current fiscalyear. on the other hand, thecement sector exports had alsowitnessed declining trend, thedata shows. Historically, a sharpincrease was seen in the coal,electricity and diesel pricesduring the last decade. coalprices increased at acompounded annual rate(cAGr) of 12.2 per cent duringthis period. The electricity pricesincreased at cAGr of 9.5 percent and diesel prices at 19.59 percent. despite the sharp increasein input costs, the cement pricescould not keep that momentumand increased by only a cAGr of

6.20 per cent (ex-factory) duringthis period. “It is a huge gapbetween the growth rate of inputcost and cement prices”, industrysources said. This gap iscontinuously hampering thefunctioning capacity of thisindustry, they added. They saidthat the recent increase in powertariff, petroleum, furnace oil andcoal prices will further damagethe industry. The prices offurnace oil and coal, two majorinputs used in manufacturing ofcement, had already increased by43 and 49 per cent respectivelysince 2007-08, whereas almost27 and 8 per cent increase inthese respective inputs have beenobserved in first quarter of FY2012. This challenge is moresevere for the cementmanufacturing plants locatedupcountry as the rate of diesel,the fuel for goods transportation,has increased to rs 105 per literfrom rs. 40.8 per liter in 2007-08. There is a huge gap betweenthe transportation costs ofdifferent plants located in variousparts of the country. The cementplants in southern zone have anadvantage being located nearerto the sea ports. during the firstquarter of current fiscal year, 7cement manufacturing plantssuffered loss before taxationaggregating to rs. 0.973 billionwhile 8 cement units, of which 3are located near Karachi in closeproximity to the sea port, earnedprofit of rs. 1.001 billion.

Cement sector continuesto under perform

PDF Profit_Layout 1 2/3/2012 10:22 PM Page 2

news

Saturday, 04 February, 2012

03

CORPORATE CORNERNBP trade unions felicitatePresident NBP for pay package

KARACHI: NBPs representative delegationsunder leadership of President of theFederation Mr. saeed Haider had a detailedmeeting with NBP President Qamar Hussain.delegation included Federation secretaryGeneral Muhammad Zaman Khan, chairmanAnwar shah, Head office employee Front’sActing President Faheem Ahmed Khan andemployees Front sindh’s President NoorAllah. representatives of Federation thankedNBP President on brining out historic PayPackage 2012-13 on behalf of employees.Federation expressed deep satisfaction on thefinancial position of bank and announcedbank is on the way to progress andstabilization under leadership of PresidentQamar Hussain. They also said that theemployee of the bank will discharge theirduties with utmost devotion and use theirabilities for further progress and stabilizationof the bank. Federation representatives alsoinformed that they will garner full support ofthe employee for better service of thecustomers. PRESS RELEASE

Board recognises Ogilvy & Mather’srole in Pak-US commercial agendaWASHINGTON: The Board of directors ofthe u.s.-Pakistan Business council (usPBc),an affiliate of the u.s. chamber of commerce,today announced the election of P. MilesYoung, Worldwide ceo of ogilvy & Mather,as the council’s new chairman. Youngsucceeds Jay collins, vice chairman, Global

Banking, citigroup, who has served aschairman since 2006. The Board also electedA. salman Amin, executive vice president andchief marketing officer, Pepsico, as vicechairman. Amin succeeds Najeeb Ghauri,chairman and ceo, Netsol Technologies. “Asworldwide chief executive officer of ogilvy &Mather, one of the largest marketingcommunications companies in the world,Miles brings a wealth of leadership to theu.s.-Pakistan Business council,” saidesperanza Jelalian, executive director of theusPBc. “Having served as a member of theBoard of directors, Miles has providedexpertise and guidance in advancing thecouncil’s policy agenda. At this pivotalmoment in u.s.-Pakistan relations, usPBc istruly fortunate to have someone of Miles’experience, insight, and vision to lead thecouncil’s efforts to strengthen the useconomic and commercial relationship withPakistan.” PRESS RELEASE

Qatar Airways sponsors 11thannual tour of Qatar cycling eventDOHA: Qatar Airways is proud to be namedofficial Partner of the Tour of Qatar cyclingevent, attracting some of the world’s bestcyclists to the prestigious event, now in its11th year. More than 200 internationalcyclists will converge on Qatar for some fineracing that is expected to attract huge crowdslining the race route. The nine-day Touraround the tiny Gulf state of Qatar will see thebest male and female cyclists compete for thecoveted titles. In the men’s event,distinguished names such as world champion,Briton Mark cavendish, Norway’s formerworld champion Thor Hushovd, defendingchampion Australian Mark renshaw andBelgian racer Tom Boonen, winner of severalTour of Qatar races, will all be aiming high forthe top prize. PRESS RELEASE

Etihad Airways offers guests theopportunity to rock with the StringsLAHORE: etihad Airways, the nationalairline of the united Arab emirates, is givingone of its guests the chance to win two ticketsto Abu dhabi to attend the next strings

concert in the uAe, along with a backstageinvite. The winner will also get to travel on thesame flight as strings members Bilal Maqsoodand Faisal Kapadya. All Guests booking returnflights from the etihad Airways’ websitewww.etihad.com/pk will be automaticallyentered in the promotion. Amer Khan,etihad Airways’ Area General Manager forPakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, said: “Weare very excited to give our valued guests inPakistan the chance to interact with strings,the iconic Pakistani band and our brandambassadors, while also experiencing ouraward-winning product and servicestravelling to the uAe.” PRESS RELEASE

Jazz launches ‘Inami Hungama’award scheme for business partnersLAHORE: Mobilink Jazz has announced thelaunch of the Jazz ‘Inami Hungama’ luckydraw scheme for business partners acrossPakistan. The promotion provides Jazzretailers the opportunity to enter a lucky drawwith a number of high value prizes on offer.The Jazz ‘Inami Hungama’ was announcedthrough a roadshow conducted by MobilinkJazz for business partners in 24 cities acrossthe country. The scheme is open to Jazzbusiness partners with a minimum of 10qualified Jazz sIM sales in a month. Thepromotion will span over the first two monthsof 2012 with separate draws to be held forvarious regions. Business partners stand achance to win prizes in multiple categorieswith cars, motorbikes and other electronicitems on offer. PRESS RELEASE

Pakistan TelecommunicationCompany Ltd’s One Wire brings it allISLAMABAD: To provide innovative andcutting-edge telecommunications solutions to itscustomers in the easiest and most affordableservice packages, Pakistan Telecommunicationcompany Ltd (PTcL) has launched a proficient“one Wire does It All” package. Through a singlelandline connection, PTcL customers can nowavail its multiple range of services, includingunlimited on-net calling, unlimited Broadbanddownloads, Mobile calls at rs.1.25 per minute,IPTV service charges waiver, line rent waiver and

a free Wifi Modem. The one Wire’s range ofunique packages start from double-up unlimited1Mbps at rs.1,999; 2Mbps Broadband forrs.2,299; 4Mbps Broadband for rs.2,999; 6MbpsBroadband for rs.5,999; and 8Mbps Broadbandfor rs.7,999 only. PRESS RELEASE

Asad Shafiq receiving cheque for hittingmaximum boundaries from Hamid Mirza, Head ofMarketing, Bank Alfalah at the 2nd internationaltest. PRESS RELEASE

Chief Guest Mr. Asif Shuja, DG EnvironmentProtection Agency and CEO IMC Mr. Parvez Ghiasalong with other officials and students at 2ndCareer Day at CTTI institute, Islamabad. ResidentDirector IMC Mr. Yasir Niazi is also seen in thepicture. PRESS RELEASE

LAHORE: Senior Vice President, Kashif YounisMehr and others, in National Photo Exhibitionorganised by Pakistan Association of PhotoJournalists PRESS RELEASE

Bulls lift index to week-high volumeKARACHI

STAFF REPORT

M ArKeT volumes contin-ued to gain strength asthey rose 21 per cent

from yesterday to finish at aweekly high of 130mn shares.The bulk of the volumes wereconcentrated in JscL, whichaccounting for approximately1/3rd of the total volumes andclosed 10 per cent above itsprevious closing price.

The local bourse also fin-ished the week on a positive run,as it gained 52 points for the day,to close at 11,982 points. After a

few strong bull runs during thecourse of the week, engro joinedthe rest of its fertilizer peers byclosing in the red zone. on thecontrary, the cement sector hada strong outing as dGKc and

LucK both ended up enjoyingstrong gains. With the resultsseason in full swing, market vol-umes are expected to remainbuoyant as investors remainhopeful of a positive earnings

season, said Ali Hussain, seniorInvestment Analyst at HMFs.The Kse 100 index closed at11982.62 levels with the gain of52.84 points, while Kse 30 indexgained 34.85 points to close at

11258.08 levels. All share indexclosed at 8314.78 levels after thegain of 43.96 points. Total 150scrips advanced 82 declined and87 remain unchanged out oftotal 319 scrips traded.

IFPRI seeks applications forresearch grants in PakistanISLAMABAD: united states basedInternational Food Policy researchInstitute (IFPrI) has launched thePakistan strategy support Program(PssP) seeking proposals for grants upto$ 50,000 for research that identifies keypolicy decisions that support thecountry’s new growth strategy. Thedeadline for filing the applications isMarch 31, 2012. The research shouldidentify key policy decisions that willsupport the new growth strategy;assesses empirically the impacts of thosedecisions; evaluates constraints to policyreform; and examines alternative policyrecommendations to enhance theirimpact. STAFF REPORT

Pakistan and Indonesia sign PTAISLAMABAD

STAFF REPORT

AFTer years of lengthy ne-gotiation, Indonesia andPakistan finally signed onFriday the PreferentialTrade Agreement (PTA) at

Jakarta. A statement issued by thecommerce Ministry said that the Min-ister of Trade of Indonesia Gita Wir-jawan, and Ambassador of Pakistansanaullah signed the agreement. Thefederal cabinet on November 2, 2011had approved the signing and ratifica-tion of PTA between the two countries.

commerce Minister MakhdoomAmin Fahim was scheduled to travel to

Jakarta to sign the agreement. Howeverdue to the session of the parliament, thePrime Minister authorized the PakistanAmbassador in Jakarta to sign the PTAon behalf of the government.

The agreement will enter into force30 days after the date on which the par-ties exchange written notifications forcompletion of their respective legalprocedures. Pakistan has completed allits internal formalities to implementPTA, while Indonesia is in the processof completing its codal formalities. Thediplomatic note will be exchanged bythe parties as soon and the formalitiesare completed by Indonesia.

Pakistan and Indonesia signed thecomprehensive economic Partnership

Agreement (cePA) in November 2005on the occasion of the visit of the Presi-dent of Indonesia. under the provisionsof cePA, both countries, in 2006, com-menced negotiations to conclude a PTA.The agreement would ultimately createa Free Trade Area between the twocountries. Both countries successfullyconcluded the negotiations process dur-ing the 8th round of negotiations heldon 16th september, 2011 in Jakarta,where Pakistan delegation was led bysecretary commerce Zafar Mahmood.

under the Agreement, Indonesiaagreed to offer market access to Pak-istan on 216 tariff lines on preferentialrate. Indonesian offer list include theproducts of export interest of Pakistan

including fresh fruits, cotton yarn, cot-ton fabrics, readymade garments, fansincluding ceiling, table, pedestal,sports goods, including badminton andlawn tennis rackets, leather goods andother industrial products. Indonesiaalso offered market access to Kinnowfrom Pakistan at zero per cent whichwill provide a level playing field to thisproduct in the Indonesian market.

Pakistan’s offer list to Indonesiaunder the Agreement includes a total of287 tariff lines for market access atpreferential tariff. Pakistan also agreedto provide the same treatment on palmoil products from Indonesia as pro-vided to Malaysia under Pak-MalaysiaFTA. It means Pakistan will import

palm oil from Indonesia at 15 per centMargin of Preference (MoP) rate.

Pakistan has been importing palmoil and its products from Malaysia andIndonesia. The preferential marketaccess provided by Pakistan to In-donesian palm products will have apositive impact on the overall econ-omy of the country. It is expected thatthis will result in saving approxi-mately $ 300 million of foreign ex-change of Pakistan. It will also help indecreasing the prices of vegetableghee, cooking oil in the country whichare going beyond the reach of com-mon man and will create competitionin the market which will discouragemonopolistic trends.

PDF Profit_Layout 1 2/3/2012 10:22 PM Page 3