Commerce Minister, Humayun Akhtar Khan, on Thursday said widening trade deficit was nothing much to worry about, this will be taken care of in a planned manner. At a press conference Humayun Akhtar Khan said that imports were shrinking for the last few months this will definitely narrow down the deficitin the balance of payment.
However, he conceded that exports' growth was much less than last year. The minister said that trade deficit could be narrowed in one go, but it could spur inflation and interest rates. He noted that the government takes care of all the implications before taking any policy decision.
Humayun said "Trade deficit is a serious issue but it can not be treated in isolation. The government's job is to take care of the economy as a whole." The minister opposed strategic sale of the public sector insurance companies and vowed for major reforms to make National Insurance Company Limited (NICL), State Life Insurance Company (SLIC) and PRCL vibrant to compete with the private sector and add to their profits.
He did not agree with a questioner that opening up of the insurance sector for foreign companies will make the local industry vulnerable. He said the new policy would help all companies to grow and make profit. He told a questioner that the idea of Takaful was floated to create awareness among the public that insurance was an Islamic tool for securing investment.
The minister also termed the new initiative of micro insurance as a major step and hoped that it would provide cover to the small entrepreneurs besides providing a new area to the companies to expand their business in the rural areas.