Tariff hike: Govt should reject application of gas companies: Zahid

KARACHI: National Business Group chairman and Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum president Mian Zahid Hussain has said that the new wave of inflation before the holy month of Ramazan should be controlled to provide some relief to the people.

Expressing concern over rising prices of almost everything despite a fall in the value of the US dollar and a stronger rupee, he said the cost of doing business of importers of raw material, finished goods and food items had reduced substantially, but the benefit was not being transferred to the people which should be noticed.

He said that the government should reject the application of the gas companies for a tariff hike up to 220 percent as this mini-budget would destroy the economy.

The strengthened rupee had reduced the import cost of cement, steel, iron, building material, food items, sugar, flour and many other things and yet cooking oil and ghee, which was available at Rs250 per kg in August 2020, was now being sold at Rs300 per kg.

Similarly the price of wheat flour, milk, sugar, poultry products and spices had increased while the price of chilli powder had increased by Rs500 per kg.

Over a billion dollars had been spent on the import of wheat flour and sugar, but prices had not stabilized, which was a question mark on the working of federal and provincial governments, he said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021