Exports: Dawood describes FY20 as 'promising'

Commerce Minister Abdul Razzak Dawood has termed the current fiscal year 'promising' in terms of improvement in Pakistan's exports, which, according to him, have increased to $ 11.53 billion showing an increase of 3.15 per cent compared to corresponding period in the previous fiscal year.

"The trend of exports during the current fiscal year has promising as exports which were $ 11.18 billion in December 2018, increased to $ 11.53 during July-December 2019, showing a positive growth of 3.15 per cent. Moreover, imports have shown a substantial decrease of 16.90 per cent during the July-December 2019 over the corresponding period previous year with positive impact on the country's balance of trade," reads a written reply of the commerce minister on Friday in response to a related query by Mohsin Aziz from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) at the Senate question-hour regarding rationalisation of exchange rate.

Speaking at the floor of the house, Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan said that the annual losses of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), in the ongoing fiscal year 2019-20, have seen a decline of Rs 21 billion but admitted that the government-run airliner is still faced with abysmal financial condition but on the road to recovery.

'The annual losses of the PIA have come down to Rs 11 billion from Rs 32 billion, which is very encouraging and the credit goes to our government," the minister said, responding to the queries of the senators regarding PIA's financial condition.

"We have been taking concrete and practicable measures to improve the financial condition of the PIA. Bailout packages provide temporary solution to lift the PIA's economic condition. The solution to PIA's problems lies in visionary and long-lasting measures which we are taking," he said.

It is, he said, by virtue of the federal government's successful steps to lift the financial condition of the PIA that SECP (Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan) removed the PIA from its default list.

Among the steps taken to improve the PIA's affairs are expansion of flight operations, merit-based appointments, rebranding the marketing strategy and a host of other measures with an aim to raise revenues.

"If you look at the losses the PIA is still incurring, you would realise that much needs to be done. But what is very positive and encouraging is that much is being done to get the PIA out of financial crisis it is presently in," the minister said.

He said the expansion of PIA flight operations not only domestically but to other countries is on the cards.

Moreover, the minister said, the PIA is following effective cost-cutting measures to drastically cut down on unrequired expenses. Subsequently, he said, the PIA flight operations on loss-making routes have had been closed.

Briefing the Senate on the steps taken by the federal government to prevent the outbreak of coronavirus in Pakistan, Leader of the House in Senate Shibli Faraz said, no case of this epidemic has so far been reported in Pakistan.

Among the steps taken to prevent coronavirus outbreak in Pakistan are installation of screening systems at the airports to detect this epidemic, establishment of an emergency operation cell at the Ministry of National Heath, Services and Regulations to monitor the situation involving coronavirus and setting up special wards at the hospitals for treating coronavirus patients, he said.

Pakistan's Foreign Office and Chinese Embassy in Islamabad are in constant contact and exchanging all the relevant information regarding coronavirus, Shibli said.

On behalf of the Senate, the federal government and the people of Pakistan, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Azam Swati assured China of Pakistan's complete cooperation against coronavirus. "Pakistan and China are time-tested friends of one another. In this hour of test, we are standing by our Chinese brethren. Together, we shall defeat this challenge," he said.

Swati also introduced in Senate the government's Federal Public Service Commission (Validation of Rules) Bill, 2020 which was referred to the standing committee concerned. The bill has already been passed by the National Assembly.

The Senate would meet again on Monday.