Businessmen and traders of Hyderabad, Kotri and Nooriabad industrial estates have expressed mixed reaction on the budget for the year 2005-06, presented by Federal State Minister for Finance Umer Ayub Khan. Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Mahmood Ahmed termed the budget as "growth friendly." He said that an end of double taxation would help minimise the inflation to some extent and stabilise the price structure of essential goods.
Former President of the HCCI and member FPCCI Amin Khatri termed it a "Balanced Budget".
Talking to Business Recorder, he said that the budget had covered every sector from Agriculture to small and medium enterprises and heavy industry, from small traders to large trading houses.
He said there were lots of expectations about cut in utility bills.
Emad Siddiqui, who has also been former president HCCI, expressed the hope that the budget would accelerate the pace of industrial and agriculture development and help in alleviating the poverty.
He appreciated the measures announced by the government for introducing a system to resolve the complaints against the Custom department and hoped that these measures would have fore reaching effects on national economy and industrialisation in the country.
He said that the tax reforms would also have positive impacts on agriculture and industrial sectors, particularly on textile, leather, plastic and ship breaking industry.
Kotri Association of Trade and Industry senior vice-chairman Tariq Baloch said the budget had come up to expectations of industrialists because relief had been given on sales tax whereas the central excise duty had also been abolished.