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Thursday, 19 July, 2012
Bokhari craves a bite of Turkish delight Urges enhanced Pak-Turkey trade, investment relations MUsIAd invites ICCI to participate in Istanbul International Fair ISLAMABAD
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HAIRMAN Senate Syed Nayyer Hussain Bokhari on Wednesday urged enhanced trade and investment with brotherly country of Turkey. “Pakistan is strongly committed to deepen, broaden and strengthen its cooperation with Turkey in every field including trade, investment, science and technology, research and development,” the Chairman said during a meeting with Grand National Assembly of Turkey Speaker Cemil Cicek, who called on the Chairman along with his delegation. “Our excellent relationship should translate into a robust cooperative partnership between the two countries. We must strengthen regional connectivity to bring our two people closer,” Bokhari added. He said Pakistan greatly values its close, abiding and time-tested friendship with Turkey and this special relation between the two brotherly countries should be cultivated further through more parliamentary exchanges and frequent people to people contacts. Bokhari elaborated the role of respective parliaments for cementing the historical ties and said, as representative of the people; our two parliaments have a special responsibility to play their role in strengthening relations in conformity with the wishes of the people. “I am confident that your visit will usher in a new era of relationship be-
tween our two parliaments.” The Chairman recapitulated the visit of Prime Minister Erodogen and his distinct privilege of addressing the parliament of Pakistan second time. Likewise former Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani also addressed the Turkish Parliament in December 2010. Urging the continuity of such high level contacts for further cementing bilateral relations, Bokhari said, frequent people to people contacts can also generate a momentum which can prove very beneficial for both the nations. He also appreciated Turkish assistance in difficult times like 2005 earthquake and 2010 and 2011 floods. Pakistan and Turkey share perspectives at regional and international level and Turkey has always been accorded a very crucial position in Islamic world. Sharing common grounds of Pak-Turkey historical relations, the chairman said Pakistan and Turkey have faced common challenges on the path to democracy. Therefore, sustainability and continuity of democracy requires working together of all
political forces of a country. He also informed the Turkish delegation about parliamentary democracy and land mark legislation during the last four years. Reciprocating the Turkish Speaker expressed similar sentiments and declared Pakistan and Turkey as brothers who always supported each other in good and bad times and will con-
tinue to do so in future as well. He also emphasized the need for close collaboration in political, economic, educational and technical fields.
ISLAMABAD APP
The Independent Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (MUSIAD) has invited on Wednesday the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) to participate in Istanbul International Fair which would be held in October. A delegation of MUSIAD comprising Foreign Relations Commission Chairman Sevket Can Tulumen, Coordinator Foreign Relations, Abdulkadir Sicakyuz and Turkish Embassy Commercial Consular, Cezmi Besogul visited ICCI and held a meeting with Yassar Sakhi Butt, ICCI President. Sevket Can Tulumen informed business leaders about 14th MUSIAD International Fair and 16th International Business Forum Congress and its importance for all the Muslim countries. He said that the Fair would be international meeting point of all the sectors where 5000 overseas entrepreneurs and distinguished businessmen from 84 countries along with Ministers, heads of Chambers of Commerce and Presidents of leading businessmen Associations will be participating. MUSIAD Chairman of Foreign Relations Commission invited ICCI office-bearers to participate in MUSIAD International Fair and International Business Forum Congress being held in Istanbul on October 11-14, 2012. He said that the business community of both the countries could enhance bilateral trade relations between Pakistan and Turkey through participating in international fairs and exhibitions. Speaking on the occasion, Yassar Sakhi Butt thanked the management of MUSIAD for giving an excellent reception to the ICCI delegation’s visit to Turkey in May, 2012. He said that Pakistan and Turkey have historic brotherly relations, thus both the countries should further strengthen the mutual trade relations by promoting business relations. The ICCI President expressed that it is the need of the hour to explore the possibility of joint ventures between Turkey and Pakistan. He said that there are tremendous chances of collaboration between Turkey and Pakistan for manufacturing of textile machinery in Pakistan. He said that we can strengthen our economy by adopting the development and progress of Turkey as a model in numerous sectors especially energy as energy is an important issue for Pakistan’s economic growth and Turkey has vast experience of exploiting hydro and other energy sources, therefore, both the countries should cooperate in this area on priority basis.
gazes beyond borders Why so Moody? Mansha MCB seeks branches in India Moody’s downgrades top 5 Pak banks LIMASSOL: Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded the localcurrency deposit ratings of the top five Pakistani banks by one notch to B3, with negative outlook, from B2, and lowered their standalone credit assessments to caa1 from b3. The affected banks are Allied Bank Limited, Habib Bank Ltd, Muslim Commercial Bank Limited, National Bank of Pakistan and United Bank Ltd. Moody’s also downgraded the foreigncurrency deposit ratings of the five banks by two notches to Caa2, from B3, to reflect the lowering of the foreign-currency deposit ceiling in Pakistan, which is the highest rating that can be assigned to a foreign-currency deposit obligation of a domestic bank. The short-term ratings have been affirmed. These actions follow the downgrade of Pakistan’s government bond ratings to Caa1, with negative outlook, from B3, on 13 July 2012. INP
KARACHI: Pakistan’s richest man has applied to open Pakistani bank branches in India for the first time since partition 65 years ago, officials said Wednesday. The Muslim Commercial Bank (MCB), Pakistan’s largest by market capitalisation at $1.2 billion, is hoping to tap into the potential riches of India’s estimated 1.2 billion people. “We have applied to the State Bank
of Pakistan and the Reserve Bank of India, the central banks of the two countries, which regulate the banking sector to open branches in India,” a senior MCB official told AFP on Wednesday. Mian Mohammad Mansha, Pakistan’s richest tycoon, told the Financial Times that his Nishat group — which has a controlling stake in MCB — had been the first to apply to open branches in India, following recent rule changes. “Our major rationale is that India is a very profitable market,” he was quoted as telling the newspaper in an interview. MCB has four million customers, with 1,165 branches in Pakistan and eight abroad. A spokesman for Pakistan’s central bank confirmed the application was under examination. The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars since independence in 1947, but in 2010 resumed a fragile peace process suspended by the 2008 Mumbai attacks blamed on Pakistani gunmen. AFP
And 18 years later… Russia WTo membership passes final legislative hurdle MOSCOW: The Russian upper house of parliament on Wednesday passed the bill ratifying Russia’s entry into the WTO, the final legislative step required before President Vladimir Putin signs it into law. The Federation Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of joining the World Trade Organization (WTO), bringing Russia to the verge of finally joining the organisation after 18 years of often acrimonious negotiations. The upper house approved the bill with 144 votes in favour and three votes against and no abstentions, following its passing by the
State Duma lower house last week. The accession will become Russian law 30 days after Putin signs the measure. Economists have long argued that Russia needed to join the WTO as it was the only major global economy outside the body — following China’s membership in 2001 — and the government hopes accession will stimulate growth. But the membership has also been controversial, with some medium-sized firms expressing concern that they will be put out of business by being unable to compete against imports made cheaper by a reduction in customs tariffs.
The reduction of customs tariffs is a key condition for Russia’s WTO membership and will fall from a current average level of 9.5 percent to 7.4 percent in 2013, 6.9 percent in 2014 and 6.0 percent in 2015. The head of the foreign affairs committee at the Federation Council, Mikhail Margelov, said Russia’s entry to become the 156th member of the WTO was a necessary step. AFP
Petroleum Ministry wants to grab oGRA’s lunchbox! ISLAMABAD ONLINE
The Ministry of Petroleum’s hectic efforts to bring Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) under its administrative control will make the Authority toothless to protect rights of the consumers. This was said by President Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) Dr.Murtaza Mughal in a statement issued here on Wednesday. He said some reports suggest that Ministry of Petroleum was making all-out efforts to bring OGRA under its control in order to get its desire objectives of importing Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) according to its own wish as ogra had opposed LNG import on the existing terms and conditions by disagreeing with the ministry on six points and relaxed rules for import of LNG. Dr.Murtaza Mughal said after failing to get Ogra nod over imported LNG and LPG projects ministry started to clip the powers of the authority which will also loose its independent role as a Regulator. “The OGRA had consistently been opposing imported LNG and LPG projects at higher rates because of various reasons that being the reason why ministry of petroleum wanted to clip the powers of OGRA by utilizing the powers and authority of the Prime minister,” he observed.
‘Markets to be set up in Balochistan to boost Pak-Iran trade’ ISLAMABAD APP
Pakistan Peoples Party leader Bismillah Khan Kakar said that new markets will be established in Balochistan for boosting trade with Iran. Talking to a private news channel, he said Pakistan and Iran have lot of trade opportunities and markets will increase bilateral trade and job opportunities for people of both countries. He said Pakistan is exporting fruits and vegetables to Iran from Quetta. Similarly, “We are importing fruits and other utilities from Iran especially in case of shortage” he added. He said Iranian Ambassador has recently arranged a meeting of traders in Quetta and promised that traders will be provided all facilities. Bismillah Kakar said Iran has supplied 100 MW electricity to Pakistan so for and Iran has agreed to supply additional 1000 MW.
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Thursday, 19 July, 2012
Facebook shares slide
Bulls at ISE ISLAMABAD
SAN FRANCISCO: Shares of Facebook Inc. fell about 1 percent on Tuesday, extending the previous day’s losses after an investment analyst reported a decline in U.S. users for the No. 1 social network. Capstone analyst Rory Maher said he used proprietary software to track user numbers by country over the past six months across more than 200 countries and worked out that the social network had shed users in both the United States and Europe. U.S. users declined by 1.1 percent, he said in a research note. Of the 23 countries where Facebook’s penetration exceeded 50 percent, only nine expanded their user base over the past three months, while the remaining 14 countries either had fewer users or saw little change. Facebook representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Facebook, which last reported more than 900 million users, has undergone phenomenal growth since its 2004 inception, culminating in a record May initial public offering that valued the company at more than $100 billion, but the stock has since lost a third of its value. On Tuesday, it slid as low as $27.15, after falling by more than 8 percent on Monday. APP
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APP
SLAMABAD Stock Exchange (ISE10) on Wednesday witnessed bullish trend as the index was up by 30.76 points to close at 2921.91 as compared to the previous day’s trading. AAH Securities Pvt Ltd, Stock Analyst, Zaheer Ahmed told APP that the results announced by HUBCO led the bullish rally in the local stock market. “The HUBCO has declared 7.05 earning per share (EPS) for full year ended on June 30, 2012 and in addition, it announced Rs.3 dividend per share for half year”, he said, adding, “it has already dispatched Rs.3 dividend for first half totaling Rs.6 dividend per year”. He said that the result session had started and the market was expecting positive earning of the companies because whatever the results announced by the companies were above the expectation of the market which was the positive indicator for the market. Moreover, the volume of the bourse was also increased because the investors have taken major positions in the blue chips companies and low-priced
Let’s cooperate, shall we? Regional Conference on Economic Cooperation this year ISLAMABAD: In a bid to create regional markets by removing trade barriers, the Regional Conference on Economic Cooperation and Trade is expected to be held in the end of this year. The Planning Commission in collaboration with World Bank and the Department for International Development UK has proposed to hold a Conference on “Regional Conference on Economic Cooperation and Trade” during the last quarter of 2012. The government has also declared 2012 as the Year of Regional Cooperation and Economic Activity. According to the official, the Conference will build on the current momentum for greater regional trade and utilize opportunities to take full advantage of emerging economic cooperation. The official said the conference will help to address overarching challenges in build-
ing greater regional trade by enhancing connectivity between people and economic sector and by opening access to finance as means to expand opportunities for crossborder investment and financial risk mitigation. The Conference is expected to help build the knowledge and analytical base for these efforts. The focus countries for this Conference are regional partners that share a border with or have recently announced the intention to signing a free trade commitment with Pakistan. This includes: Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, and Turkey other developments that could enhance trade with Pakistan’s neighbors include: progress in structuring commercial arrangements to underpin the proposed TAPI gas pipeline between Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. ONLINE
shares, he added. Total volume of shares traded was 82,793, which was up by 20,493 as compared to a day earlier closing. Out of 130 companies’ shares traded, the price of 103 was increased while the price of 27 decreased. The price of top gainer Unilever Pakistan was increased by Rs.124.25 and the price of top loser Akzo Noble Pakistan decreased by Rs.5.61. DK Khan Cement, Fauji Cement Company and Bank of Punjab remained volume leaders on Wednesday, with volume 40,000, 15,000 and 10,000 shares respectively.
Business 19 Major Gainers COMPANY UniLever Pak Unilever Food Millat Tractors Wyeth Pak Limited Mithchells Fruit
OPEN 7156.00 2752.50 491.10 860.57 302.76
HIGH 7287.00 2849.00 515.65 875.00 317.00
LOW 7275.00 2828.00 494.00 869.00 288.00
CLOSE 7280.25 2840.98 515.59 874.99 316.77
CHANGE 124.25 88.48 24.49 14.42 14.01
TURNOVER 4 12 134,771 43 1,029
Major Losers Akzo Nobel Pak. Philip Morris Pak. J.D.W.Sugar Clover Pakistan Pak.Int.Cont SD
112.39 148.01 106.52 83.32 149.17
109.98 147.01 102.51 83.50 153.00
106.78 143.00 102.50 82.00 148.00
106.78 143.52 102.50 82.00 148.04
-5.61 -4.49 -4.02 -1.32 -1.13
615,734 3,804 1,561 385 3,749
Volume Leaders Jah.Sidd. Co. D.G.K.Cement Azgard Nine Hub Power Company Fauji Cement
14.66 44.92 6.69 43.63 5.85
15.66 45.90 7.30 44.29 6.13
14.80 44.60 6.73 43.41 5.81
15.66 45.68 7.22 43.80 6.09
1.00 0.76 0.53 0.17 0.24
17,644,864 12,464,417 12,181,108 6,926,463 6,751,896
Interbank Rates US Dollar UK Pound Japanese Yen Euro
94.4100 147.2230 1.1942 115.5106
Dollar East US Dollar Euro Great Britain Pound Japanese Yen Canadian Dollar Hong Kong Dollar UAE Dirham Saudi Riyal Australian Dollar
BUY
SELL
94.60 114.89 146.68 1.1866 92.36 12.01 25.65 25.15 96.37
95.40 116.16 148.26 1.1993 93.86 12.21 25.90 25.35 98.86
Fahim entices EU delegation discusses matters regarding GsP Plus status to Pakistan with EU ISLAMABAD: The Senior Commerce Minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim on Wednesday sought members of European Parliament to use their influence for early legislation of trade concessions in EU parliament, whose meeting is scheduled to be held in September, 2012. He stated this while talking to a visiting delegation comprising members of European Parliament which called on him here today. The delegation comprising members of European Parliament included Chair of the South Asia delegation Ms Jean Lambert MEP, Agricultural and Economic Policy specialists Phil Bennion, Lass Weigmark EU delegation Head, Committee on Industry, Research and Energy Salvador Sedo, Administrator Delegation Secretariat Philipee Kamaris
and Political Advisor Ms Sabine Meyer. Both the sides discussed matters of mutual interest and ways of enhancing trade between Pakistan and EU. The EU delegation emphasized on proper compliance of 27 international conventions mandatory for becoming eligible for duty free excess through GSP Plus scheme for EU, said a statement issued by the Ministry of Commerce. These conventions pertain to human rights good governance, labor rights, environment and narcotics control. The Commerce Minister informed the meeting that Government of Pakistan has ratified all these conventions. The EU delegation appreciated the liberalization of trade between Pakistan and India. It will not only enhance the bilateral trade but also be helpful in improving political relations between the two countries, EU delegation added. APP
CORPORATE CORNER Financial Institutions of Pakistan can improve payment systems through oracle
to local consumers in Pakistan in order to make internet more accessible and affordable for all new subscribers. Under this offer, a consumer purchasing an Intel ® processors-based PC, will get a free Wateen Wimax Broadband connection, enabling consumers to enjoy speedy internet connectivity with their new PC’s. Consumers can save up to six thousand rupees by utilizing this special program available for the first time in Pakistan.
south Africa is the economic gateway to rest of Africa
Sanofi Pakistan’s employees that received certification in Business Management from the IBA products. First two days of the Exhibition was restricted to buyers from different trading sectors whereas on the last the exhibition was opened to public.
KARACHI: Business Process Management has gained broad acceptance as a key enabler for achieving operational efficiency and process compliance for businesses in various industries. Financial institutions and intermediaries in Pakistan are looking to significantly improve their payment processing systems, in order to meet compliance and regulatory needs. Oracle can help enable institutions to build shared processes that unify existing payments systems across internal and external interfaces in a timely and cost efficient manner.
PC/Internet bundle provides 3 month line rent waiver, zero subscription charges KARACHI: Intel Pakistan and Wateen Telecom have joined hands to offer internet access program
Beneficiary families of BIsP to get 10% discount in the Utility stores
ISLAMABAD: A group of 33 businessmen representing 21 companies participated in South African International Trade Exhibition (SAITEX) and Africa Big Seven held from 15 th to 17 th of July 2012. The Exhibitors from Pakistan represented businessmen across different sectors which interalia include Textile and Madeup, Sport Goods, Pharmaceutical Industry, Furniture, Rice, Confectioneries, etc. Thousands of visitors and prospective buyers belonging to various sectors visited Pakistani stalls and showed keen interest in Pakistan
PTCL 3G EVO Wireless Broadband Internet best rated project in LUMS best among such initiatives in the social sector in the 44 countries of the world. BISP has achieved the level of success in the span of just four years for which several other countries have taken 4 decades. The success of the programme could be measured by the fact that more than five countries have contacted BISP to seek its support to replicate the programme in those countries. Federal Minister and BISP Chairperson Farzana Raja said during a press conference.
RoZEE.PK part of All World Network and IFC top entrepreneurs summit at harvard ISLAMABAD: Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) has successfully achieved the target of making Pakistan a social welfare state as promised by the Government of Pakistan Peoples Party. The programme is regarded as one of the
LAHORE: ROZEE.PK Pakistan’s leading job portal, recently participated in the 100 All World fast growth entrepreneurs and business leaders All World Summit at Harvard. Business leaders from the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region, Pakistan and Turkey participated in the three-day event.