All Karachi Tajir Ittehad Chairman Atiq Mir has termed the first year of the PML-N government a 'depressed year' for the country's small businesses, saying that the next fiscal budget should be business-friendly. Talking to Business Recorder here on Friday, he said that the government's first year's economic plans remained unviable to small businesses. "The government must correct its economic polices to help the economy grow without an external support," he added.
He said that during the year over 25 edible items had witnessed an increase in prices by 25-30 percent. Mir said that even the Saudi Arabia's financial aid of Rs 1.5 billion had failed to help revive the ailing economy. He said that besides the six to eight hours power cuts on daily basis, the heavy taxes also hit the trade growth hard. "Business activities shrank by 20 percent during the last one year due to the government's poor economic policies," he added.
He further said that despite the appreciation of rupee against dollar, inflation in the country could not be controlled. "The continuing tussle among a number of political parties on election results will further affect the economy," he said urging all the stakeholders to sit together and find an amicable solution to their differences. He also urged the government to give a big relief to general public in the upcoming budget.