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Friday, 30 November, 2012
India desires mutual economic engagements NEW DELHI
I
ONLINE
NDIA on Thursday assured a high level Pakistan business delegation of steps to enhance mutual economic engagement, through setting up of bank branches in each other’s territory and opening up of more trade routes. “Let both the countries quickly establish two bank branches first. We may also look at the possibility of expanding and bringing in some private sector banks,” Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma told the delegation reported PTI. He said India is keen to open more trade routes between the countries to boost bilateral commerce. “We are keen...In our state of Punjab, they want opening up of more border points and also in Rajasthan. I believe
‘D-8 summit was a failure’ ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Thursday said outcome of recently held D-8 Summit was nothing more than disappointment. The Summit produced a largely meaningless document that failed to address the challenges the block is faced with, it said. The 35-point declaration of the eighth Summit was as flawed as the outcome, said Dr. Murtaza Mughal, President PEW. The D-8 member states are facing challenges like energy scarcity, international pressures, food security, communal violence, terrorism, natural disaster and a tarnished image which needed to be addressed through joint efforts, he said. However, the Summit failed to announce any solid decision and relied on promises, claims and hollow commitments, he added. Dr. Murtaza Mughal said that stressing the need for joint efforts is not enough to justify the spending on such an event when country is relying on aid and loans. In fact, D-8 has done nothing since last 15 years therefore no one should pin any hope for betterment or change, he observed. He said that the summit has expressed intent to increase the bloc’s trade from $130 billion to US$507 billion by 2018 but it seems a difficult task in absence of any concrete plan. Declaration was disappointing from any standard and remained useless as it was focused on using language to please masses. Majority of the countries of the group have enormous natural and human resources but what they lack is sincere leadership, Dr. Mughal noted. ONLINE
there is a similar desire from the Pakistan side so that other states of Pakistan are also connected,” Sharma said. Meanwhile, according to an official, the Minister informed the delegation that India is working on a textile policy specifically for its neighbouring countries. “The ministry is working on the South Asia Textile Cooperation Policy,” an official said. This comes in the wake of allegations from a Pakistan delegation member that his country’s textile industry was given a different treatment by India as compared to other neighbouring countries. One of the member of the business delegation during the meeting alleged that India gives more concessions to Bangladesh textile firms compared to Pakistan and that it was a discrimination which should be removed, a source said. On the visa issue, Sharma said that
Pakistan should operationalise the process soon for smooth movement of businessmen from both countries. India and Pakistan signed a new visa agreement on September 8 in Islamabad. Once implemented, the agreement will lead to liberalising of the bilateral visa regime and introduction of a number of measures aimed at easing travel, including visits for business purposes. “The new visa Agreement has still not come into force. Pakistan needs to indicate its readiness to bring into force the new visa agreement. We are ready to do so,” Sharma told the delegation. On foreign direct investment, the minister asked the Pakistan business leaders to seek assistance from ‘Invest India’ — a vehicle to guide investments into the country. Meanwhile, Chairman of Pakistan
NCCPL revises yearly CGT fee to Rs 24,000 KARACHI STAFF REPORT
The National Clearing Company of Pakistan (NCCPL) has revised the fee it charges from the equity investors on trades and transactions used for the computation and determination of the Capital Gain Tax (CGT). The revised fee ranges form Rs 240 to Rs 24,000 depending on the annual value of trades and transactions. The move, a company statement Thursday said, was aimed at providing “relief to the investors”. The NCCPL would imple-
ment slab based annual CGT fee for the investors according to their values of trades and transactions. As per the revised schedule, the NCCPL said, if annual traded value of an investor is less than Rs 100,000, no fee would be charged to such investor. If annual traded value of an investor is between Rs 100,000 to Rs 5 million, fee of Rs 240 would be charged to such investor. If annual traded value of an investor is between Rs 5 million to Rs 10 million, fee of Rs 360 would be charged to such investor. If annual traded value of an investor is between Rs 10 million to Rs 50 million, fee of Rs 600 would be charged to such investor. If annual t r a d e d value of an investor i s be-
tween Rs 50 million to Rs 100 million, fee of Rs 1,800 would be charged to such investor. If annual traded value of an investor is between Rs 100 million to Rs 500 million, fee of Rs 3,600 would be charged to such investor. If annual traded value of an investor is between Rs 500 million to Rs 1.0 billion, fee of Rs 12,000 would be charged to such investor. If annual traded value of an investor is between Rs 1.0 billion to Rs 5.0 billion, fee of Rs 18,000 would be charged to such investor and if annual traded value of an investor is over Rs 5.0 billion, fee of Rs 24,000 would be charged to such investor. In an earlier statement, the company announced to have collected the tax on capital gains from the equity investments to the tune of Rs 310 million during the six-month period ranging form April 24 to September 30, 2012. The company said during the period under review it had collected CGT worth Rs 103.27 million during April 24-June 30 and Rs 206.35 million during July 1-September 30, respectively, on account of trades and transactions executed and settled at the country’s stocks market. “Whereas the collection of October is underway,” it said.
Business Council Ali S Habib said Sharma told the delegation that steps are being taken to remove non-tariff barriers. “We have been assured that steps are and will be taken (in this regard),” Habib said after the meeting. He said tremendous opportunities existed for business communities from both the countries. “In so many sectors we can cooperate. India produces all kinds of raw materials and products that Pakistan is importing. Pakistan is very strong in textiles,” he said. He said there is a need to focus on issues like logistics, transportation, better visa regime and more points for flow of goods between the countries. The 11-member business delegation is here on a three-day visit. The bilateral trade between the two countries currently stood at $ 2.7 billion.
‘Agribusiness is Pakistan’s future’ KARACHI: The Entrepreneurship Development Program is an initiative to create capacity in the educated youth of Sindh for self-employment and utilize the untapped resource base of agriculture of Sindh to its optimum capacity. This was stated by Chairman SBI Zubair Motiwala after a graceful launching ceremony and Orientation session of Entrepreneurship Development Program held at the Center for Entrepreneurship Development of Institute of Business Administration (IBA), here on Thursday. The ceremony was attended by the faculty of IBA Karachi led by Dean and Director Dr. Ishrat Husain as well as Sindh Board of Investment. The main purpose of the ceremony was to welcome the first incoming batch of the program consisting of 75 students fro the southern districts of Sindh, including Karachi. This is a unique initiative taken by Government of Sindh which includes 6-month training program conceived and funded by the SBI and being executed by IBA Karachi and Sukkur IBA. The vision behind the program has been highly appreciated at all levels in which heightened focus has been given to entrepreneurship and many advantages enterprise development like income generation, innovation and progress. It was further informed that EDP is a unique training program, which will be executed by IBA Karachi in lower Sindh and by Sukkut IBA for applicants from northern districts of Sindh. STAFF REPORT
Malaysia eyes Pakistani livestock, food products ISLAMABAD ONLINE
Pakistan and Malaysia have decided to further enhance bilateral cooperation in the field of agriculture with Malaysia agreeing to import more livestock, fish, rice, beef, fruits and vegetables from Pakistan. “We are already importing a considerable amount of rice, fruits and other food products from Pakistan and we want this cooperation to grow further in the coming months,” said Malaysia’s Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Noh Omar during a meeting with Pakistan’s Minister for National Food Security and Research Israrullah Zehri in Kuala Lumpur. During the meeting, Malaysia’s Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Noh Omar recalled his visit to Pakistan in December 2009 and his meeting with the then Minister for Agriculture Nazar Mohammad Gondal. He also mentioned about 171 buffalos which were given to Malaysia by the Govern-
ment of Punjab and called for relaxing the procedure for importing more animals from Pakistan as Malaysia was in need of many more. He also appreciated the quality of Pakistani fruits specially mangoes and kinoos and hoped that the quantum of fruits being imported from Pakistan will increase with the passage of time. Datuk Seri Noh Omar noted that following his visit to Pakistan, three separate Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) had been signed between the two governments for exchange of scientific knowledge and technology cooperation as well as for the import and distribution of fruit juices, fruit-based consumer products and frozen beef from Pakistan to Malaysia. Similarly, a Letter of Intent had also been signed between the Government of Punjab and the Department of Veterinary Services Malaysia for expanding cooperation in the veterinary sector. Datuk Seri Noh Omar said the Malaysian government had moved swiftly on implementing these MoUs and it had
already granted license for export of Pakistani beef to Malaysia while a total of 171 animals, including Neeli Ravi buffaloes, had also been imported from Pakistan for developing “our buffalo industry and improving their gene pool”. He also referred to the growing import of Pakistani rice to Malaysia which imported 43,000 MT of Pakistani rice in 2009 but increased it to 123,000 MT in 2010 and to a sizeable 148,000 MT in 2011 respectively. Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Israrullah Zehri thanked his Malaysian counterpart for inviting him to attend the Malaysian Agriculture, Horticulture and Agrotourism Show (MAHA) 2012 and urged the Malaysian government to consider increasing import of beef and mutton from Pakistan as quality of meat was very good and the slaughtering of animals was in accordance with Halal standards. He also invited his Malaysian counterpart to visit Pakistan in February 2012 to attend the livestock fair held in Sibi Balochistan. Later, Israrullah Zehri visited various
pavilions and stalls set up at MAHA 2012. He evinced keen interest in various products, food items and livestock put on display. Later, he also spoke to the local media and shared with them various proposals and measures currently being pursued by Pakistan and Malaysia to enhance mutual cooperation in a diverse range of fields, including import of agricultural machinery and equipment; tech-
niques of horticulture fruit-growing and vegetable gardening; plant protection and fertilizers; livestock farming and breeding; Green House technology; feed and feedstuff production; veterinary medicine; fish farming; energy-saving technologies for agriculture; production of biomass fuel, biogas, biodiesel, renewable and alternative energies (Biofuel); and water management and forestry.