The Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) has called for the implementation of the Prime Minister Export Enhancement Package in its true spirit apart from initiating steps, such as providing uninterrupted energy supply to the industry to make Pakistan exports competitive in the international market.
Chairman PIAF Irfan Iqbal Sheikh in a statement on Tuesday stressed the need for evolving an export-led policy and availability of energy at regionally competitive prices for economic turnaround. He said the much-awaited export package, approved recently by the ECC to steer the exporting industry out of crisis, is not being implemented by the government while the crisis is worsening day-by-day.
He said that not only our share in the global market was shrinking and going to other countries but also the unit price of our products was decreasing thus resulting in reduced profitability for Pakistani exporters. He urged the Prime Minister to come to rescue this vital sector of economy and get the relief package implemented in its true spirit, as only then the exports of the country could be sustained.
He said the capacity of the industry is mostly un-utilized while overhead costs have increased, compelling the export sectors' factories to think of alternatives. Sheikh said that the textiles in general and the value-added apparel sector in particular were becoming uncompetitive in international market.
That is why export of our textile is continuously on the decline for the last few years while that of our competing countries like Bangladesh, India, China and Vietnam is on the rise, he said. He also stressed that the supply of power and gas should not be interrupted during winter as the export orders in hand have to be honoured, otherwise the industrialists would be losing the hard-earned export markets. Considering the textile package a ray of hope for survival of industry, he said that it should be implemented without any further delay.