In partnership with
saturday, 14 January, 2023 i 21 Jamadi us sani, 1444
Pharma sector hints at shortage of life saving drugs
Profit
More than 260 Pakistani companies participate in Heimtextil exhibition 2023
Govt softens stance as oilseed vessels released except two being inspected
Beco steel halts production due to delay in L/C approval
Story on Back Page
Story on Back Page
rs 15.00 | Vol Xiii no 196 i 12 Pages i islamabad edition
Story on Back Page
Story on Back Page
KP Chief Minister ‘PrePares’ suMMary for asseMbly dissolution g
BArrister sAif sAys Process of kP AsseMBLy dissoLution to Begin After PunjAB AsseMBLy dissoLved
peSHAWAr
K
StAff RepoRt
HyBer Pakhtunkhwa (kP) chief Minister Mahmood khan may initiate the process to dissolve the provincial assembly as and when the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly is duly notified, a senior cabinet member told on friday. the kP government spokesman, Barrister Muhammad Ali saif, said that legally, it took at least 48 hours for any assembly to be dissolved after a summary was signed and sent to the governor. However, he said that the process of dissolving the kP Assembly would begin after the Punjab Assembly was dissolved. He also said that there was no hurdle stopping the government from dissolving the kP Assembly. Meanwhile, Pti central leader Asad umar
g
AsAd sAys PML-Q did not MAke Any sPecific deMAnd for seAt AdjustMent
said that the next step was the dissolution of the Punjab Assembly. Asked when the kP Assembly was going to be dissolved, he said it “should be dissolved in the next 48 hours”. on a question if there had been a final settlement between Pti and PML-Q on seat adjustment, he said there was no definitive number of the seats that the PMLQ was asking. “in fact, they have said that they would be discussing the seat adjustment after the dissolution has taken place” to avoid the impression that the party was blackmailing the Pti. in line with the directions of Pakistan tehreek-e-insaf (Pti) chairman imran khan, khyber Pakhtunkhwa (kP) chief Minister Mahmood khan has prepared a summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly, revealed the party’s senior vice-President fawad chaudhry. the development came a day after
Punjab chief Minister Parvez elahi signed the summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly. during an interaction with journalists on friday, fawad said that “money laundering” was the key reason behind the country’s economic crisis. “How can there be economic prosperity in the country, when the finance minister is involved in money laundering,” he added. referring to a question, the Pti leader asked the Punjab governor not to wait for “48 hours” and urged him to dissolve the assembly immediately so that the process for the formation of an interim set up be initiated. He hoped that a person who can hold impartial elections in the province would be named as a caretaker chief minister. ‘Court reJeCts Plea filed by new broiler MQM’: the plea filed by the new “broiler MQM” was rejected by the court, the Pti leader said, adding that the Lg polls in karachi and Hyderabad would be held as per the schedule — january 15 (sunday). All component parties of the Pakistan democratic Movement (PdM) were trying to avoid the elections, he said, adding that they were afraid of facing the people. speaking on the occasion, fawad also urged the supreme court to ensure that the elections are held as per the schedule. extending a dialogue offer to the federal government yet again, he asked the centre to jointly devise a framework for the general elections in the country. the Pti leader also said that President Arif Alvi can ask Prime Minister shehbaz sharif to take a trust vote as it is his “constitutional right”. PML-n supremo nawaz sharif should return home and face the cases lodged against him, he said. Let the investigations into the assassination attempt on the life of Pti chief imran khan be completed independently, fawad said and warned against any obstacle in it.
Petrol, diesel prices likely to go up for second half of January profit report AhmAd AhmAdAni
Price of petrol is expected to go up by rs8.98 per litre while high speed diesel (Hsd) by rs1.06/litre for the second to half of january on the basis of existing petroleum levy (PL) and general sale tax (gst) on petroleum products. However, sources in the petroleum division said that the government can maintain the prices of petroleum products at the current level by adjusting the petroleum levy (PL) imposed on petroleum products for the second half of january. At present, the government is charging rs 50/litre PL on Ms ron 92 (Petrol) and rs 32.50/litre on Hsd while zero general sales tax is imposed on petrol, Hsd, high octane blended component (HoBc), kerosene oil and light diesel oil (Ldo). similarly, inland freight equalization Margin is fixed at rs 3.51/litre on the sale of petrol, while rs 0.81/litre on Hsd. furthermore, oil Marketing Margins on petrol and Hsd is fixed at rs 5/litre. furthermore, the dealers’ commission on petrol and
Hsd is fixed at rs 7/litre. An estimated Pakistan state oil (Pso)’s exchange rate adjustment is rs 5 per litre on petrol and rs 3.50 per litre on Hsd. in the last 12 days the rupee value against the us dollar is from rs 225.93 to rs 227.72. According to sources, if the government opts to increase the price of petrol and Hsd by rs 8.98/litre and rs 1.06/litre respectively, petrol price will go up from rs 214.80/litre to rs 223.78/litre, and Hsd price will go up from rs 227.80 to rs 228.86 per litre. the expected prices of kerosene oil (sko) is likely to go down by rs 3.10/litre from rs 171.83/litre to rs 168.73/litre and light diesel oil (Ldo) price will likely go down by rs 2.39/litre from rs 169/litre to rs 166.61 per litre for the second half of january 2023. it is pertinent to mention here that in order to fulfil the energy demand approximately 430,000 Metric ton Mogas, 200,000 Mt High speed diesel (Hsd) and 650,000Mt crude oil is imported on a monthly basis at a cost of around $ 1.3 billion.
oil companies sound alarm about fuel shortage in letter to finance ministry g
ocAc seeks Ministry’s intervention for tiMeLy issuAnce of Letters of credit By BAnks for PetroLeuM Products’ iMPorts profit report AhmAd AhmAdAni
oil companies on friday asked the finance ministry to urgently intervene to ensure the timely issuance of letters of credit to import petroleum products to avoid a fuel shortage in the country. the oil companies Advisory council (ocAc) wrote a letter on friday on behalf of oil Marketing companies (oMcs) and refineries highlighting challenges being faced due to delays in the opening of letters of credit (Lcs) for the import of petroleum products. Pakistan, an energy deficit country, needs to import approximately 430,000 metric tonnes ( Mts) of mogas, 200,000 Mts of High speed diesel (Hsd) and 650,000 Mts of crude oil every month, which costs around $1.3 billion. ocAc said challenges in opening and confirming Lcs has caused delays in multiple cargoes and a few cancellations as well. the situation has
severely deteriorated during the current month as banks are declining Lcs to industry members. “if Lcs are not established on a timely basis, critical imports of petroleum products would be impacted which may lead to fuel shortage in the country. it may be noted that if the supply chain is compromised, it may take six to eight weeks to normalise,” ocAc said in the letter. Aqeel Ahmed khan, the chief executive officer of HAscoL Petroleum Limited, in a letter dated january 9, 2022, to governor state Bank of Pakistan (sBP) jameel Ahmad also highlighted the challenges being faced in opening Lcs and import contracts. the Hesco chief explained that the imports of petroleum products requires a definitive financial instrument (in the form of import contracts/confirmed Lcs), as per requisite banking regulations, and delays in this regard, despite availability of Lc lines, is hampering the oil supply chain, leading to supply disruptions in the country.
furthermore, the non-availability of import contracts/Lcs has had a marked negative effect on international oil suppliers leading to forced cancellation of oil cargoes. the situation has been especially bleak in the first week of january 2023, whereby Pakistani banks are denying any new Lc which will lead to critical shortages of oil at the retail stations in coming weeks, if not addressed immediately, added khan. According to sources at the petroleum division, local banks have also regretted issuing Lcs to Attock Petroleum Limited (APL) based on the plea that the sBP has instructed them to ration based on the foreign reserves situation. Pakistan’s foreign reserves held by the sBP have fallen to critical levels, standing at $4.3 billion, the lowest in years, which is enough to cover just three weeks of imports. total reserves, including those held by commercial banks is just $10.1 billion Local banks have informed APL that they are not in a position to facilitate any new Lc due to
the reserves situation. Moreover, APL is also facing issues with the confirmation of import Lcs by foreign banks because of curtailed credit limits on account of downgrading of Pakistan’s credit rating being downgraded by international ratings agencies and rising associated risks. APL, the second largest oMc in Pakistan with a vast network of 731 retail stations, told ocAc in a letter dated 12th january 2023 requested the organisation to immediately take up the matter with authorities to avoid an imminent fuel crisis. in the letter, a copy of which is available with Profit, APL warned of the consequences of supplies drying out in retail stations: “this will eventually not only lead to civil unrest in public but also lead to aggravating the economic crisis.”