KARACHI: Irfan Iqbal Sheikh, President of Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), has informed that the detailed negotiations with the federal ministry of commerce have been fruitful from the platform of FPCCI and an expected extension in the date of implementation of SRO 598 is soon to be notified.

He thanked the federal government in advance on behalf of the entire business, industry and trade community of Pakistan. He added that the step will save the importers from losses amounting to billions of rupees; as the SRO 598 was imposed suddenly and a sort of quarantine was imposed at all ports on the luxury items in-transit, under existing orders or under other commercial transactional procedures.

President FPCCI recalled that FPCCI has been advocating the extension in the date of implementation of SRO 598 from day one; when it was notified on May 19, 2022 as the ban was sudden and would have caused huge losses to the importers.

Irfan Iqbal Sheikh has also thanked Syed Khurshid Shah, federal minister for water resources, for playing his pivotal role in withdrawal of 17 percent GST on seeds in the federal budget 2022 - 23; as seeds are one of the main inputs in the agriculture and economic viability of various crops. It will benefit the farmers in multiple ways, i.e., reducing their costs and enhancing their yields, he added. FPCCI Chief maintained that feeding a population of 220 million people is a humongous challenge in the current circumstances; and, import substitution in food items is also critical to save precious foreign exchange reserves.

Irfan Iqbal Sheikh has termed the above-mentioned targeted interventions as indispensable for the food security of the country and saving the importers from losses in billions of rupees. He also pinned his hopes in the consultative process with the economic team of the government in the broader national interest.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022