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Bulls tumble another record, index soars 189 points Page 03
profit.com.pk
Tuesday, 06 March, 2012
SBP, SECP joint task force set up to establish vibrant corporate debt market KARACHI STAFF REPORT
joint task force of the State Bank and Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has been set up to draft a framework for establishing a vibrant corporate debt market in the country. This was disclosed by Governor State Bank of Pakistan Yaseen Anwar while delivering his key-note address at a conference on ‘Long Term Debt Financing Issues and Challenges for Pakistan’ organised by the Institute of Business Management (IoBM) here Monday. According to the SBP governor, the tasks of the joint task force include develop guidelines for shelf registration of corporate debt, collaboration with credit rating agencies to streamline the issuer and instrument rating process, coordination with provincial authorities on rationalisation of stamp duty on transfer and issuance of corporate debt instruments, collaboration with the FBR and government of Pakistan to rationalise tax treatment of corporate debt instruments as to encourage the development of corporate debt market it is essential that taxation issues are addressed in an appropriate manner and communicated to the stakeholders, develop standards for valuation of corporate debt instruments. A document containing all conventions and standards is a need to streamline the approval process of shelf registration with an objective to facilitate the issuer, he said. Anwar said these initiatives are of utmost importance to be above to move from a purely banking loans market to-
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wards a vibrant debt capital markets. “This will not only facilitate providing diversified investment avenues for various stakeholders, but would also help in improving saving ratios of the country and enable borrowers to raise efficiently price financing for crucial infrastructure projects, he said, adding that in this regard, the investment banks as well as development finance institutions should also play a significant role in the development of a vibrant corporate debt market. SBP Governor said corporate debt markets are important for several reasons: as a source of long term financing; providing competition to the banking sector; and enhancing financial stability. “I believe that we need to develop an alternative avenue of intermediation: corporate debt market. These markets will allow the channeling of funds directly from savers to the private sector – matching the demand for funds for long term investments with the supply of long term savings,” he added. He said the existence of a functioning private bond market serves both borrowers – by broadening access to funding, and by lowering borrowing costs – as well as savers. “In Pakistan’s case in particular, it would provide savers with an alternative to bank deposits. It has long been recognised that the presence of such markets is a significant source of competition for the banking system,” he added. It is a matter of concern and indicative of potential that the size of the listed corporate debt market in Pakistan stands at less than one per cent of GDP, he said adding that a corporate debt market could enhance financial stability by mitigating rollover interest risk for borrowers. He
said corporate debt market can improve the allocation of capital, as market-determined rates provide a clearer measure of the opportunity cost of funds. Governor said in an uncertain macro environment, banks were reluctant to advance longterm loans to the private sector and often resort to short-term lending. “This implies that in the absence of corporate debt market, firms will find it difficult to rise funding for long-term investment projects,” he said. Essentially, he said, the short-term nature of bank lending would bias capital investment in general, and may exacerbate cyclical fluctuations in economic activity. “This will be particularly true in industries where costs are recovered over a much longer-term. Such industries include construction, power generation, etc,” he added. He pointed out that in most countries, the government – as the largest issuer of debt securities – provides the volume required for a liquid secondary market. In Pakistan, however, PIBs are unable to serve this for two reasons, he said, and added ‘firstly, the market is not sufficiently liquid, and secondly, there is no benchmark for private bonds that are issued for a tenor of between 5 and 8 years - since PIBs are only available in maturities of 5 and 10 years. Anwar said competition from the government for the same pool of savings undermines progress towards greater financial deepening. The risk-free nature of investment in various NSS schemes, their ad-hoc rate adjustment, and the ability to redeem prematurely, dominates any corporate bond in the market, he said, adding that the private sector,
therefore, has to issue bonds that carry a higher interest rate than NSS rates to compensate for the risk of default that the private sector carries. ‘This makes the issuance of corporate sector debt expensive,’ he added. He suggested the process for primary issuance of corporate debt should be simpler one and fast track; so that a corporate could raise funds quickly when conditions are favorable for debt issuance. Shelf registration is an efficient way of issuing the debt instruments as it saves the cost and time. Although, in Pakistan we have shelf registration for corporate bonds but it usually takes long time for the approval process, he said and added that considering the persistently thin volumes on BATS developed by KSE, market participants should be encouraged to use Bloomberg EBND, which trades almost 65 per cent of volumes, also trading in corporate debt instruments. SBP Governor said the appetite for raising debt on the capital markets is also an issue. Corporates are reluctant to approach the bond market because of the disclosure requirements, and their preference to remain undocumented, he said and added that the corporate culture in the country must change, so that family-owned businesses are not constrained from future growth. Anwar recalled that our fiscal deficit is not unmanageable, but we need to deepen our financial markets to ensure that any adverse development on the fiscal side of affairs does not negatively impact the pool of credit available to the private sector. “There is immense room for improvement when it comes to financial deepening through bond markets,” he added.
QuICk EdIT
Election year growth
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oU can tell budget season is near when the finance ministry begins last-quarter growth strategy chatter, FBR chairman promises no new taxes and the prime minister directs the planning commission to make development and employment its top priority. Watch for spirited pledges to safeguard the development budget next. Could these be coded signals? By plotting a return to growth, do fiscal and monetary authorities actually mean that this time they’ll restrict government presence in the money market, drawing the crowded out private sector back to the capital market? By no new taxes, is the FBR chairman actually implying that the boys have got a handle on expanding the tax net, and they’ll come up to capacity within the present regime before considering new taxes? And is the prime minister really trying to say that the old culture of inefficient enterprises and political appointments is over? Simply put, policy is not the biggest problem considering the present circumstances, practice is. Since we are effectively in election cycle, official circles are best advised to avoid slogans that have been repeatedly rubbished, and that too of their own doing. True, development must return to the economy, but that will require setting a series of events in motion, which in turn demands an official posture not always suited to election time in our part of the world. on the other hand, avoiding decisions crucial for economic revival will not sit well with an already disgruntled electorate anyway. Still, it’s not really a difficult choice. What must be done must be done. And that will take a lot more than mere promises.
MARBLE EXPORTS
Indian marble market more lucrative than Chinese g
Pakistani marble exporters to attend first ever exhibition in India KARACHI
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GHULAM ABBAS
NDIAN marble market which so far remained untapped is more lucrative for Pakistani marble compared to the Chinese market. Pakistani exporters of marble who are going to attend the forth coming exhibition in New Delhi are of the view that Islamabad could hardly meet the huge demand for marble in the neighbouring country. According to them, the foreign market for raw material, processed and semi processed marble has remained untapped during the last 60 years. The first ever exhibition ‘Lifestyle Pakistan’ scheduled to be held next month could be a good initiative to open door for various kinds of Pakistani marble. Though 60 per cent of the country’s exports of raw material go to China from where the processed marble is re-exported to other countries, Pakistani marble could also enter
many other potential markets through value addition in India. As latest Indian made machineries of the marbles sector are already coming here from Dubai, the further transfer of technology could also help the exporters to sale processed and finished material abroad. “The big importers/exporters of marble in China and India are mostly unaware of the reserves and quality of the stones produced in Pakistan,” Sanaullah Khan Chairman, All Pakistan Marble Mining, Processing and Export Industry told Profit on Monday. The only issue here was how to increase production /mining of marble as the precious stones worth $1 billion were being consumed locally, while demands abroad were also increasing day by day, he added. The global demand
for Pakistan’s marble, which is considered to be one of the best in the world, is already increasing. Saudi Arabia’s projects for building new cities are the latest in view, implying great potential of purchasing Pakistan’s marble on a large scale. Saudi Arabia also has plans for erecting the world’s tallest building (around 1,000 metres tall, while close to 300 civil construction projects are already either in progress or in design across
the Saudi Kingdom. All this construction means a great amount of profit for Pakistan via export of its high-quality marble. In the next five years, marble export is expected to increase to about a billion dollars – a great boost for Pakistan’s economy. However, certain challenges need to be overcome; the main challenge being the power crisis in the country which is hindering the processing of raw marble in the marble factories. Updating the machinery and technology for enhanced performance of the marble industry is another major requirement. Together with granite (used in construction); marble leads the list of Pakistan’s economically viable mineral deposits. Besides the main drawbacks of this industry is the absence of sophisticated techniques; mining through explosives which do not allow production of large slabs of marble and implies important wastage.
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Tuesday, 06 March, 2012
debate Gas restored for SNGPL based plants
Banks to keep an eye on millers to ensure 5,000 tonnes sugar export quota KARACHI
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ISMAIL dILAWAR
HE central bank Monday asked the commercial banks to maintain record of the sugar exporting mills to ensure that the exporters do not exceed the maximum prescribed quota of 5,000 tonnes per sugar mill. The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), in its January 31st meeting, had said yes to the demand of Pakistan Sugar Mills Association to allow the export of 100,000 tonnes of surplus sugar to, apparently, ward off a possible glut in the local market. The Ministry of Commerce, through public notice number 7(2)/2012-E-III, had tasked the State Bank of Pakistan to “monitor the exports and no form (E) shall be issued
in excess of individual and cumulative ceiling” that was set at 5,000 tonnes by the ECC. Monday saw the central bank notifying the authorised dealers in the Foreign Exchange of a “mechanism” of compliance with regard to the sugar exports by the millers. Under the mechanism, the SBP said, the banks would forward for its approval the requests of the sugar mills along with photocopies of E-Form, the contract, Letter of Credit, advance payment etc. “The banks should also maintain the record of each sugar mill to ensure compliance of maximum prescribed quota of 5,000 tonnes per sugar mill,” said the State Bank. All requests, it said, should be addressed to the Director Exchange Policy Department of the SBP, situated in regulator’s head office here. The central
Plastic importers, manufacturers threaten to shut down LAHORE STAFF REPORT
LASTIC importers and manufacturers have threatened to shut down their businesses and stage sit in protest against unchecked smuggling of plastic moulding compound from Iran by land route. A nine-member delegation of Punjab Plastic Importers and Manufacturers Association called on LCCI President Irfan Qaiser Sheikh on Monday and informed him that the unchecked menace of smuggling was not only causing a loss of Rs25 billion annually to the exchequer, but also hitting hard the entire businesses. Punjab Plastic and Manufacturers Association delegation, comprising Malik Munwar, Javaid Jillani, Chaudhry Mobeen, Mian Anjum, Sheikh Waheed, Usman Sharif, Sheikh Pervaiz, Sheikh Mohammad Ayub and Malik Fakhir Sultan said it is very surprising that on one hand, FBR authorities were exiting tax payers by issuing SRos like 191(I) 2012 while on the other hand, the menace of smuggling is fast spreading its tentacles under their watch and at the cost exchequer. The delegates said the authorities concerned should immediately ban import of Polyethene and Polyproplene from Iran via land route from any border of Pakistan, as at present these products are available in the local market at Rs20/kg, below the imported price that is very damaging for the local businessmen. They informed the
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LCCI President that the association had already sent letters to Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) that the smuggling of polymers from Iran was not only causing huge loss to the government, but was also badly damaging the local investors who are running their businesses through clean documentation. They said only because of these unscrupulous elements it has become almost impossible for the genuine businessmen to continue their businesses. They said that the total import of plastic raw material Polyethene and Polyproplene in 2010-2011 was about Rs75.5 billion. The importers pay advance tax at port about 38 per cent in lieu of duties and taxes and if the smuggling is not stopped, it will lead to a loss of minimum Rs25 billion to the exchequer. They said it was very unfortunate that people sitting at the helm of affairs of FBR are taking this important issue of national importance very lightly. They said government would have to weed out the menace of smuggling once for all to save the local investors and economy. Speaking on the occasion, Irfan Qaiser Sheikh said Lahore Chamber of Commerce would extend full cooperation to FBR if it initiates a strict action against such black sheep who are not only challenging the writ of the law, but also denting the economy in a big way. He said growth of the unorganised sector must be checked for the sake of organised sectors that are doing business after paying all their dues.
bank would allow permission against each E-Form on first come first served basis, it said adding the bank concerned would send sugar export update to the Director Exchange Policy Department on weekly basis. The State Bank warned that the applications that are “incomplete” or received to it after April 15 (2012) would not be considered. “Authorised dealers are advised to bring the same to the notice of all their constituents,” the bank said through issuing EPD Circular Letter No. 03 of 2012 on Monday. The Ministry of Commerce, in a public notice, set following conditions for the millers to export excess sugar. a) 100,000 tonnes of sugar will be exported. b) A quantity not in excess of 5,000 tones shall be exported by individual sugar mills on first come
first basis. c) The export shall be made only against “E” Form. d) The State Bank of Pakistan will monitor the exports and no form (E) shall be issued in excess of individual and cumulative ceiling mentioned above. The federal government had banned sugar export in 2009 when prices of the daily-use kitchen item skyrocketed to double, over Rs80 per kilogram, in the domestic market. Since then the sugar millers have been demanding of the government to allow the export of sugar that is in excess of the country’s strategic stocks. Pakistan consumes, annually, around 4.2 million tonnes of sugar while the expected surplus at the end of current season is estimated at 1.5 million tonnes.
Export crash continues amid government lethargy FAISALABAD FARAkH SHAHzAd
AKISTAN Textile Exporters Association has expressed grave concern over 354.5 million dollars decline in national exports and decline of 800 million dollars in textile exports in the last four months. This was expressed by Rana Arif Tauseef, Chairman Pakistan Textile Exporters Association addressing a hurriedly called press conference from the platform of All Punjab Textile Associations Council here Sunday. Addressing the press conference, Rana Arif said slow poisoning of national economy is being precipitated due to the non serious attitude of the government, as overall exports of the country are heading towards total collapse after visible decline in textile exports. He said textile was once mainstay of the national economy which was experiencing continuous decline particularly during last four months. He mentioned the energy crisis and said summers have started, but still gas is only available two days in a week. Similarly, electricity tariff has been increased up to 40 per cent, but still the menace of load shedding is plaguing the industrial sectors. He further said textile exporters were pinpointing the root causes of industrial decline with repeated requests for necessary remedial steps, but government remained mum and no proper strategy was carved out to save textile sector from crisis. He said 40 per cent industry has been closed while the remaining was running with 80 per cent capacity. During the last four months, decline of 800 million dollar in textile exports have been recorded and now its fall out impact has been hitting the overall exports which may lead the
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country towards economic bankruptcy. He also quoted statistics of last five years and said during the month of January, a record decline of 354.5 million dollars has been registered which is alarming for the economic managers of the country. He warned this situation would spur inflation and unending vicious circle of getting loan to pay the loan from IMF with unbearable conditionalities. He said this situation would add unbearable burden on the economy and make life of common man miserable. Government has no finances to meet its expenditure and it was in this respect that it was forced to present national federal budget in the month of May, instead of June. Responding to another question, Rana Arif said textile exporters had been forewarning the government about the fast looming crisis, but no steps have so far been taken to ratify the situation. Government failed to understand the gravity of the situation, despite our protestation, strikes and sitins and now they are highly disappointed with the government’s attitude. He further said various tax collecting agencies and departments are out to harass the industrialists in their bid to extort maximum money from them. Textile council in consultation with its member association was busy to finalise a new strategy to nail down these departments and this strategy would be announced very soon, he added. He also appreciated the government decision of giving the status of the most favourite nation status to India, but said that before giving this status, Pakistani government should provide equal opportunities to domestic industrialist so that they could compete with them on equal footings. He hoped that government would pay serious attention to save forex earning sector before it is too late.
LAHORE: After several months of forced closure due to gas curtailment in 2011 and first two months of 2012, gas supply to fertiliser plants on SNGPL network was restored on Saturday, excluding Dawood Hercules Fertilisers Limited situated at Sheikhpura, whose gas supply remained suspended. The Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) based plants that include Pakarab, Engro Enven, Agritech and Dawood Hercules Fertilisers, with an accumulative urea production capacity of 2.2 million tonnes have been facing huge gas curtailments throughout 2011 and since the beginning of 2012. Besides the 62 days of shutdown during 2012 to date, Dawood Hercules Fertilisers was shut down for 192 days, Engro Enven for 190 days, Agritech for 173 days and Pakarab for 144 days during 2011. In the absence of gas supply which is a raw material the fertilisers industry could only produce 4.9 million tonnes of urea against an installed capacity of 6.9 million tonnes in 2011. This record shortfall in the production of urea forced the government to spend nearly $800 million in precious foreign exchange for import of costly urea and further Rs54 billon as subsidy on imported urea to keep it at the price of locally produced urea. While welcoming the government’s decision to resume supply of gas to Pakarab, Agritech and Engro Enven plants, the CEo Dawood Hercules Fertiliser, Rashid Lone regretted that DH Fertilisers are facing discriminatory treatment in the matter of supply of gas. He pointed out that DH Fertilisers remains the only fertiliser factory on the SNGPL network to which gas supply has not been restored. STAFF REPORT
ICCI for fair utilisation of EOBI funds ISLAMABAD: The ambitions of the cash rich state owned Employees old-age Benefits Institution (EoBI) to finance mega infrastructure projects has drawn criticism from the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) which has demanded that the government should use its funds for social security and welfare of private sector workers instead of spending on non-welfare purposes. President ICCI Yassar Sakhi Butt on Monday said that the workers were deprived of their old age pension, health and educational benefits as the government was spending and investing these funds in unnecessary and un-profitable investments. He said that industrial workers of the private sector play vital role in the economic development of the country and they should be facilitated and all options should be utilised to secure their rights. He said the benefits provided by EoBI to workers were negligible and there was a need to chalk out a broad policy to safe-guard the rights of labourers. He urged the government to contribute in the social security funds being the trustee of these funds rather than spending such funds for the political and other non-development purposes. STAFF REPORT
PIAF urges govt to focus on economic activities LAHORE: Pakistan Industrial and Traders Associations Front (PIAF) has urged the government to focus on promotion of economic activities in the country as an acute shortage of gas, electricity, political instability and high cost of doing business were coming in the way of achieving economic targets. In a statement issued here, PIAF Chairman Engineer Sohail Lashari said it was very unfortunate that no new dam was built in the country since 1973, while the entire country was in grip of load-shedding for the last many years. He said during this period, India got 100 new dams and its GDP growth is an eye-opener for all. He said only because of electricity shortage, investment both at local and foreign level, has nose-dived rather a number of existing industrial units have shifted their operations to the other countries. PIAF Chairman said country’s reliance on costly thermal power has jacked up the cost of doing business in the country thus making Pakistani merchandise less attractive in the global marketplace. Engineer Sohail Lashari said enhanced economic activities would help government get rid of bank borrowings and maximum funds would be made available to the business community. STAFF REPORT
uBL Omni wins GSMA Global Mobile Award KARACHI: United Bank Limited’s Branchless Banking Service, UBL omni recently won the GSMA Global Mobile Award 2012 for “Best Use of Mobile in Emergency or Humanitarian Situations”. The announcement was made in a special ceremony at the GSMA’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain on Tuesday 28th February. GSMA (Groupe Speciale Mobile Association) Global Mobile Award is the telecommunication industry’s biggest annual event. This year it received a record 600 entries from all over the world for the 31 categories. More than 170 independent analysts, journalists, academics and subject matter experts throughout the world participated in the judging of the 2012 awards. For UBL omni, the judges commented that there was growing interest in how to direct aid payments to the needy and this scheme utilising mobile phones is a valuable initiative. STAFF REPORT
TdAP workshop on export procedures LAHORE: Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), Lahore is organising a workshop on ‘Export Procedures’ on 15th March 2012. The workshop will focus on educating news exporters from development sector about cost and time effective documentation for execution of orders and effectively dealing with banks, freight forwarders, customs, brokers and foreign buyers. STAFF REPORT
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Tuesday, 06 March, 2012
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news
Bulls tumble another record, index soars 189 points KARACHI
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STAFF REPORT
HE Karachi stocks market witnessed another bullish day on Monday with trading volumes peaking to new highs on the back of what market analysts said a follow on of the apex regulator’s confirmation for the implementation of the capital gains taxrelated reforms from next month. “The bullish activity witnessed at KSE amid higher trades leading the index to record close as a follow on of apex regulator confirmation for reformed CGT regime implementation from April1,” viewed Ashen Mehanti, a director at Arif Habib Securities. The first trading day of the week saw the benchmark KSE 100-share index gaining 189.34 points to close at 13,278.31 points as against 13,088.97 points of Friday last week. “The KSE100, as expected, made another positive day with high turnover of 200mn shares. The index man-
ISLAMABAD
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S part of its mandate to develop the capital market, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan has approved regulations governing Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) for the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE). The trading in ETFs at the stock exchanges will provide investors with alternative invest-
Company
Open
High
Low
Close
Change
Turnover
Nestle PakistanXD Colgate Palmolive Indus Dyeing Wyeth Pak Limited Tri-Pack Films
3801.89 816.50 388.66 760.97 198.26
3991.98 850.00 408.09 780.00 208.17
3670.00 805.00 369.70 753.00 199.00
3991.98 843.23 402.25 773.12 207.77
190.09 406 26.73 132 13.59 573 12.15 160 9.51 18,883
Major Losers Pak Services EFU General Ins ZIL Limited Clover Pakistan National Foods aged to post a new high and the highest close for the current uptrend, which is a healthy sign,” commented Abdul Azeem, an analyst at InvestCap. The index was seen hitting the intraday high and low of 13,311.79 points 13,080.83 points. The total traded shares at the ready-counter were counted at record 295.138 million shares compared to 253.003 million shares of the previous session. The trading value also skyrocketed to Rs8.120 billion from Friday’s Rs6.576 billion.
According to analysts, the factors that played as a catalyst for Monday’s bullish sentiments on the market include retail and institutional interest witnessed on strong valuations in banking, oil and fertiliser stocks, the resumption of gas supplies in fertiliser sector, the easing of circular debt concerns in power sector after electricity tariffs were raised by 39 per cent by the Nepra after a major earning announcements. This was despite “concerns for falling rupee dollar parity and current account deficit,” added
Mehanti. The market capital increased to Rs3.441 trillion against Rs3.392 trillion of previous day. of the total 355 scrips traded, 210 gained, 86 lost while 59 remained unchanged. The turnover in future contracts also witnessed an upward trend and surged to 17.021 million shares from last week’s 14.310 million shares. Fauji Cement kept dominating the volumes and counted its traded shares at 32.78 million shares each priced at Rs5.03 in the opening and Rs4.89 in the closing.
SECP approves regulations for kSE Exchange Traded Funds STAFF REPORT
Major Gainers
ment avenues while allowing diversified portfolio of securities that track a benchmark index and improve liquidity in the market. Internationally, ETFs are among the fastest growing investment products which due to a growing demand are being customized to cover specific arrays of regions, sectors, stocks, commodities, bonds, futures and other asset classes. The approved regulations will enable the stock exchange to list and regulate
trading in ETFs which at their core are portfolios of securities that are traded like individual stocks on an exchange. The regulations broadly cover the listing procedure for ETFs, trading and clearing and settlement of ETF units, disclosure requirements for asset management companies, obligations of authorised participants, fee structure etc. Aspects related to market making by the authorised participants will be covered in the KSE’s
regulations for market making. The role of market makers remains crucial in trading ETFs as the arbitrage trades by these participants narrow the gap between ETF market prices and the net asset values of the indexed shares. The ETFs in general provide investors with various benefits such as trading flexibility; diversification of overall portfolio and transparency in terms of publishing underlying holdings on a daily basis.
138.65 76.00 55.02 49.10 93.00
134.00 78.50 56.34 47.00 92.50
131.72 72.20 52.27 47.00 91.00
132.65 72.37 52.74 47.00 91.00
5.24 10.37 15.53 32.51 55.19
4.84 9.37 14.78 31.20 52.65
4.89 10.37 15.53 31.88 53.82
-6.00 246 -3.63 37,263 -2.28 6,202 -2.10 690 -2.00 7,350
Volume Leaders Fauji Cement Jah Sidd Co Bank Al-Falah Arif Habib Co SD National Bank
5.03 9.37 14.53 30.97 52.85
-0.14 32,784,665 1.00 27,489,494 1.00 23,073,011 0.91 22,006,695 0.97 19,077,850
Interbank Rates US Dollar UK Pound Japanese Yen Euro
90.8485 143.4861 1.1181 119.6292
US Dollar Euro Great Britain Pound Japanese Yen Canadian Dollar Hong Kong Dollar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal Australian Dollar
Buy
Sell
90.60 119.34 143.17 1.1039 90.56 11.49 24.63 24.13 96.07
91.10 120.54 144.49 1.1137 92.00 11.74 24.82 24.29 98.50
CORPORATE CORNER 24th Annual Marketing Conference of Fauji Fertiliser
Servis comes up with a new campaign for summer
are disbursed mainly for the procurement of seeds, leveling land, pesticides etc and fertilisers and the second category is for the purchase of agricultural tractors and implements and construction of modern storage, cattle farms, poultry farms, etc facilities.
LG opens two lifestyle galleries in karachi
KARACHI: The 24th Annual Marketing Conference of Fauji Fertiliser Company Ltd was held on March 01-02, 2012 at Sheraton, Karachi. Lt General Malik Arif Hayat, HI (M) (Retired), the Chief Executive and Managing Director of the Company presided over the conference. The theme of the conference was “Excellence – The Key to Sustain Market Leadership”. It was attended by the entire marketing team and senior management of the company. Besides review of performance for the year 2011, challenges pertaining to future fertiliser market, competition and strategies to maintain the leadership position were also discussed. PRESS RELEASE
Pakistan, Afghanistan commit to strengthen microfinance sector ISLAMABAD: Both Pakistan and Afghanistan, being neighbouring developing countries in the Asian region, can benefit by developing and promoting the financial infrastructure to support microfinance through continuous knowledge and skill sharing experiences of their respective markets. This was said in the press statement following the meeting of Ghalib Nishtar, President, Khushhalibank with the visiting officials from Afghanistan representing the microfinance sector that included, Bahram Barzin, Director Technical Support, Monitoring and Supervision, Microsoft Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan (MISFA), and Mr Najibullah Samim, Executive Director, Afghanistan Microfinance Association (AMA), and Patmana Rafiq Kunary, Member Services Specialist, Financial Access for Investing in the Development of Afghanistan (FAIDA). PRESS RELEASE
LAHORE: Summer festivity starts on a ‘feel good’ note with an exciting new campaign from Pakistan’s leading footwear brand Servis unfolding in March. The campaign encapsulates the warmth and softness of summer moments – it is that time of the year when you drench happily in the rain, play cricket on the beach, go partying with friends and basically do anything and everything that will take you outdoors to catch up with fun in the sun with friends. The television commercial croons “Kabhi chaltay huay, ruktay huay, qadmon mein barhtay huay, baharon kay sang, yahan wahan, make me feel good, make me feel good’, throwing the audiences into total serenity with its soothing melody. PRESS RELEASE
NBP leads in agri credit financing with Rs42.4 billion disbursed KARACHI: National Bank of Pakistan is among top ‘five’ banks of Pakistan. While it offers complete range of commercial banking services, on the key areas is lending to farmers. For the financial year 2011-12 the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has fixed an indicate lending target of Rs280 billion out of this NBP has been assigned the maximum share, a specialised institution created to cater the needs of farmers. NBP takes pride in having disbursed even more than the target assigned last year and aims at offering even better services to the farmers due to its greater outreach. This becomes possible only because NBP’s 875 branches out of total 1271 domestic branches are involved in catering to the needs of farmers. The other feature distinguishing NBP is very competitive mark up rate, lower than the rate being charged by other financial institutions. The loans disbursed can be divided into two categories, production and development loans. Under the first category loans
LAHORE: LG Electronics (LG), a global leader in consumer electronics, mobile communications and home appliances, recently opened two new showrooms at Zamzama and Shahra-e-Faisal in Karachi. These showrooms are LG’s first Lifestyle Galleries designed to serve the needs of customers by offering them the opportunity to experience the complete range of LG products. Customers have the chance to enhance their lives by having access to the most innovative products in home entertainment, home appliances, IT and mobile communications – all under one roof. Speaking at the inauguration of the showroom, Mr DY Kim, President of LG Electronics, Gulf FZE-Pakistan said, “From innovative green health home appliances technology and the latest smart phones to unique Cinema 3D TV technology, we are launching these showrooms to ensure convenience and accessibility for our customers. The products we are offering through the showroom combine elegance, technological advancement and ease of use.” PRESS RELEASE
Corolla xli) cars. The winners will be contacted by Ufone itself via call from ‘333’ number or via an SMS from ‘Ufone’ ID. This offer is applicable from 1st March 2012 to 31st March 2012. PRESS RELEASE
Surf Excel re-launches through 3d display KARACHI: Unilever Pakistan has always chosen the most spectacular and unique ways to introduce its brands. This is the first time 3D projection has been used in Pakistan. Surf Excel is being re-launched through this 3D display on PNSC building which is a key landmark of Karachi. Everyone present was enthralled by this unique spectacle. With this 3D projection Surf Excel has become the first brand to use this technology in Pakistan. Let’s go over now to PNSC building where this intriguing projection is taking place. PRESS RELEASE
Samsung invites innovative ideas from consumers LAHORE: Samsung Electronics Co Limited is a global leader and award-winning innovator in consumer electronics, digital media and telecommunications. Recently, it engaged the consumers on facebook, through “Samsung Eco-Bubble Idea Contest” aimed at gathering fresh ideas for enriching product benefits. The contest generated a great response and valuable ideas from the consumers that can make the Eco-Bubble washing machine even more interesting and enjoyable to use. The winning participant, with the most innovative idea, was rewarded with a fabulous prize A Samsung Galaxy Tab. The winner, Mr Mohammad Ahmed from Multan, presented the most novel idea; Samsung Galaxy Tab built into the Eco-Bubble washing machine to deliver exciting new experiences for the consumers. PRESS RELEASE
ufone launches ShahCar offer ISLAMABAD: For the month of March, Ufone has launched an outstanding offer which will put 10 of its valued customers behind the steering wheel of their very own cars! Ufone’s ShahCar offer has paved the opportunity for Ufone customers to take part in a lucky draw and win a smooth and sleek Toyota Corolla car. To be a part of the ShahCar offer, the Ufone customers need to consume a minimum balance of Rs200 during the month of March. This will automatically qualify them enter a lucky draw where 10 lucky customers will become proud owners of fabulous 1300cc (Toyota
LAHORE: Mr Hirofumi Nagao, Md/CEO, Pak Suzuki Motor Co Ltd inaugurated the project of renovation and construction at Govt Primary Boys Secondary School. PRESS RELEASE