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NO REPRIEVE FOR MAY 9 PERPETRATORS ON PRETEXT OF HR ISSUES: DG ISPR
Profit
Tuesday, 27 June, 2023 I 8 Zil Hajj, 1444
MAJ-GEN AHMED SHARIF TERMS EVENTS OF MAY 9 UNDOUBTEDLY CONSPIRACY AGAINST PAKISTAN
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RAWALPINDI
STAFF REPORT
HE military on Monday announced the dismissal of three army officer including a lieutenant general among 11 highranking officials from service, in disciplinary action taken in response to their failure to safeguard security installations and as a part of the military’s “self-accountability process” into the events of May 9. During a strongly-worded news con-
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ference, Maj-Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, director general of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), expressed concern over the nationwide protests triggered by the unlawful arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan last month and the alleged desecration of military monuments across the country. The DG ISPR said there would be no reprieve or leniency for the facilitators and perpetrators of the May 9 mayhem on account of fake human rights narrative. A thorough probe had clearly indi-
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THREE ARMY OFFICERS INCLUDING A LTGEN AMONG 11 OFFICIALS SACKED AS PART OF ‘SELF-ACCOUNTABILITY PROCESS’
cated that May 9 riots and arson were a pre-planned and orchestrated conspiracy against the armed forces, he said, adding there was no substance in the concocted narrative of any human rights abuses. He highlighted the families of martyrs and all ranks of the army were raising questions regarding these events. “The May 9 incidents have demonstrated that the miscreants accomplished what the enemies of Pakistan could not,” Maj-Gen Chaudhry claimed. Furthermore, the spokesperson of the army condemned the protests, deeming them
a dark chapter in Pakistan’s history and a significant conspiracy against the nation. The wave of protests, Maj-Gen Chaudhry, revealed that evidence related to the violent incidents has been gathered as investigations were underway. He emphasised the army’s continuous efforts to eliminate terrorists from the country. He further expressed the concerns of all ranks within the army, questioning the sacrifice of their lives if the memorials of the fallen heroes are subjected to such desecration.
What went behind MPC’s emergency decision to hike policy rate to 22% g
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SUDDEN MOVE COMES AS NEW HOPES OF RESTORATION OF IMF PROGRAMME HAVE BEEN IGNITED FOLLOWING ADJUSTMENTS IN BUDGET PROFIT
MARIAM UMAR FAROOQ
In an emergency meeting of the central bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), the policy rate in the country was raised by 100 basis points (bps) to 22% effective June 27, 2023. The decision comes only two weeks after the last MPC meeting where the interest rate was kept unchanged at 21%. However, a recent flurry of activity that has found the government scrambling to make last minute changes to secure a deal with the IMF led to the emergency meeting. Analysts believe that the hike in the policy rate is another condition set forth by the IMF. “This seems to be another IMF condition. Higher rates would increase debt servicing burden on both government and private sector, but if this leads to an IMF program, the positives would outweigh the neg-
ative implications, considering fragile macroeconomic conditions”, Fahad Rauf Head of Research at Ismail Iqbal Securities (Pvt.) Limited told Profit. “The sudden revision of the budget and increase in taxes, uplifting import ban and hiking the policy rate in an emergency meeting are all indicative that these measures have been undertaken to appease the IMF team,” Sana Tawfiq, Senior Analyst at Arif Habib Limited, told Profit “Although it was an emergency decision which could have had a negative impact on the market, the market will not take it negatively since it shows that the probability of receiving funds from the IMF have increased. Even today the market stood at 1000+”. The benchmark KSE-100 closed at 41,347 points, up 1,371 points. Was the emergency increase unprecedented? In a press release, the central bank said that after its meeting held on June 12, two pivotal domestic devel-
opments have taken place that have slightly worsened the inflation outlook and could potentially intensify the pressure on already strained external accounts. These developments entail the approval of increased taxes, duties, and PDL rates in the FY24 budget by the National Assembly on June 25, 2023, as well as the discontinuation of the import ban by the SBP on June 23, 2023. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) acknowledged these measures as necessary steps toward fulfilling the ongoing International Monetary Fund (IMF) program. It affirmed that these supplementary tax measures are likely to have a direct and indirect impact on inflation, while the relaxation in imports may exert pressure on the foreign exchange market. Consequently, the MPC made the decision to raise the policy rate, ensuring that the real interest rate remains firmly positive on a forward-looking basis.
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PSX witnesses bullish trend, gains 1,371 points on IMF deal hopes g
BENCHMARK KSE-100 INDEX JUMPS MORE THAN 1,000 POINTS AS COUNTRY EXPECTS TO SIGN A DEAL WITH LENDER PROFIT APP
The 100-index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed bullish trend on Monday, gaining 1,371.78 points on Monday, a positive change of 3.42 per cent, closing at 41,437.10 points against 40,065.32 points the previous day. A total of 226,821,151 shares were traded during the day as compared to 136,899,866 shares the previous day, whereas the price of shares stood at Rs7.010 billion against Rs. 3.372 billion on the last trading day. As many as 327 companies transacted their shares in the stock market; 269 of them recorded gains and 43 sustained losses, whereas the share price of 15 companies remained unchanged. The three top-trading companies were WorldCall Telecom with 26,220.940 shares at Rs.1.12 per share; Fauji Fert Bin with 13,147,500 shares at Rs.11.61 per share and Sui North Gas with 12,503,829 shares at Rs.40.54 per share. Pak Tobacco witnessed a maximum increase of Rs.43.66 per share price, closing at Rs.692.51, whereas the runner-up was Colgate Palm with an Rs.40.39 rise in its per share price to Rs.1,138.06. Pak Service witnessed a maximum decrease of Rs.63.00 per share closing at Rs.779.00; followed by Faisal Spinning with Rs.26.25 decline to close at Rs.323,75.