With the frequent upward revision in the prices of gas and electricity, the financial viability of the industry keeps eroding and cost of doing business is increasing, making it difficult to keep industrial units operative in the international market. Industrialists featured that industrial units can not survive and they are bound to close down in near future.
President of Pakistan Industrial Promotion Forum (PIPF), Khalid Tawab said that increasing power and gas tariff on the directive of IMF and World Bank may lead to increase crises and closure of industries in future.
He said business sector in Pakistan is already in hot waters due to multiple factors including security issues, energy crisis, high interest rates, squeezing credit facilities and dwindling exports while recent increase in power and gas tariff will add fuel to the fire, endangering the survival of trade and industry in the country.
He said that closure of industrial units would lead to missive unemployment and creation of law and order problem. He said that Pakistan exports are already started declining and feared that the government may not achieve export and revenue generation targets.
Former Vice President of FPCCI, Zubair F Tufail said that Pakistan has lost competitive edge in international market owing high cost of manufacturing. He was of the view that government should not bow down before IMF and World Bank and must protect its own indigenous industry.