CAP urges govt to review restrictions on retail operating hours

LAHORE: The Chainstore Association of Pakistan (CAP) has urged the government to urgently review restrictions on retail operating hours, warning that more than five months of curtailed trading has taken a heavy toll on sales, tax revenue, employment and businesses across the country’s formal retail sector.

The restrictions, in place since 7 April, have forced shops to close early during what would normally be peak trading hours.

CAP said it recognised the energy supply and cost pressures facing Pakistan amid recent regional tensions and supported the need for conservation. However, it argued that the savings from restricted hours must be weighed against the wider economic cost.

As an immediate step, the association proposed allowing all retail shops and shopping malls in Punjab and Islamabad to remain open until 11:00 PM on Fridays and Saturdays, with restaurants permitted to stay open even later.

Citing Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) data and previously reported declines in retail sales during restricted hours, CAP estimated that the curbs are suppressing between Rs45 billion and Rs75 billion in documented retail activity every week, with losses to the exchequer potentially reaching Rs10 billion per week in unpaid taxes. Government officials had earlier acknowledged similar revenue losses during a previous round of nationwide 8:00 PM closures.

“We fully recognise the difficult energy situation facing the country and the need for responsible conservation,” said Tariq Mehboob, CAP’s Patron-in-Chief. “But businesses cannot indefinitely absorb the loss of their most productive trading hours. The government must urgently weigh the energy saved against the taxes, jobs and economic activity being lost.”

CAP said the fallout extends well beyond retail, with falling sales reducing orders for manufacturers and activity across logistics, warehousing, packaging and commercial real estate, ultimately affecting production, employment and household incomes.

“Tier-1 retailers are among the country’s most documented and tax-compliant businesses,” said CAP Chairman Asfandyar Farrukh. “When peak trading hours are taken away, the impact flows backwards to manufacturers, suppliers and service providers; and ultimately to workers and the national exchequer.”

The association also pointed to an uneven impact on shopping malls, where restaurants can stay open until 11:00 PM but retail stores must shut at 9:00 PM, a gap it said hurts mall footfall and food courts while raising doubts about the real energy savings, since common mall infrastructure continues running regardless.

CAP noted that other parts of Pakistan operate under more relaxed timings, and that major regional retail hubs continue trading later despite similar pressures. It said malls in Dubai stay open until midnight on weekends, centres in Riyadh and Jeddah operate until around midnight, and retail hubs in Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta remain open until at least 10:00 PM. Early closures, CAP added, also limit shopping and leisure activity for visitors and send a mixed signal at a time when Pakistan is trying to attract greater investment.

“After more than five months, the economic consequences are accumulating,” said CAP Senior Vice Chairman Ahsen Mehmood. “Conservation must be targeted and proportionate. Extending weekend timings offer a practical balance between protecting energy supplies and protecting jobs, tax revenues and productive economic activity.”

CAP called on the government to immediately allow retail shops and malls to operate until 11:00 PM on Fridays and Saturdays, with extended hours for restaurants, while continuing conservation efforts and conducting a transparent cost-benefit review of the current restrictions.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026