President Pervez Musharraf on Wednesday said the fundamentals of the country''s economy were sound, however stressed the need to ensure political stability and sustainability of policies to develop investors'' confidence.
Talking to a delegation of Islamabad Stock Exchange here, President Musharraf said the core issue was to build confidence of the people in general and investors in particular besides ensuring sustainability of policies. The President said Pakistan is a land of opportunities for businessmen and investors as their investment ensured handsome returns.
He expressed the confidence that the government would meet all economic challenges and assured to extend his maximum co-operation and support to the government. The delegates apprised the President of their concerns generally on the country''s economy, particularly the downward drift in stock markets.
They viewed the stock market as a barometer of country''s economic trends and observed that while economic fundamentals were still sound, there appeared to be a negative perception which was instrumental in continuous decline of stock markets.
The new reforms initiated by the regulator were, however, helpful and had arrested the decline to some extent, the delegates said. The delegates also stressed to amend the basic rules of stock market to provide protection to small investors and said they should be taken into confidence on important matters related to stock markets and formulation of rules and regulations.
The President also reiterated Pakistan''s firm resolve to eliminate terrorism and fight extremism in order to ensure security of life and property of citizens. He said promoting national harmony and re-conciliation by shunning all differences and rising beyond personal likes or dislikes was need of the hour.