The trade and industry felt dejected over the Monetary Policy announced by the Governor, State Bank Pakistan on Saturday. The Patron In-chief, Korangi Association of Trade and Industry (KATI), S M Muneer, Chairman, Syed Johar Ali Qandhari have said that the central bank has finally stopped cruel decision to keep on increasing discount rates which was resulting in mounting NPLs (non-performing loans).
They said that it was need of the hour to reduce and gradually bring the interest rate down to single digit but SBP has retailed the 14 per cent bank rate without any justification. They further said that interest rate is highest in Pakistan as compared to rest of the world and the exporters have been rendered in competitive in export market due to massive overheads.
The President, Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum and Chairman, FPCCI Standing Committee, Mian Zahid Husain has termed the SBP's decision as anti-industry and anti-economy. He pointed out that even SBP Governor himself admitted that government could not achieved any monetary goal by increasing discount rate yet he has not realised that highest bank rate prevailing in the country is resulting in mass number of defaulters.
He informed that over several hundred cases of NPLs are pending before the courts and the number of defaulters is feared to increase further. Mian Zahid said that as the SBP chief has realised the grim situation and ever-increasing inflation due to faulty Monetary Policy he should bring down discount rate to the level of June 2010 without further delay in order to rescue economy which is deteriorating fast.-PR