Masses unable to withstand continued price shocks: PBIF

KARACHI: Chairman of National Business Group and President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), Mian Zahid Hussain has said that masses are unable to withstand continued price shocks at a time when their income has been squeezed.

He said pandemic has reduced inflation in many countries due to contracted demand barring Pakistan where it has crossed all the limits to make life difficult for the masses.

Mian Zahid Hussain said that agreement with the IMF for achieving impossible tax targets was a mistake for which the nation is paying the price while economy is facing problems.

He said that coronavirus has damaged economic activities resulting in reduced demand and an average reduction of 3 to 4 percent in many countries but it is another way around in Pakistan due to the absence of any control.

Now masses are not able to tolerate price shocks as their real income has already gone down with a rapid pace, he added.

He said that revenue deal with IMF was a blunder as the authorities ignored expansion in the tax net that has increase pressure on the existing taxpayers while the government adopted strategy to increase energy tariff and petroleum prices which is an easy way out.

Masses are being informed about the increase in exports but the authorities are silent about volume of imports, he said, adding that the July-December deficit has remained 1.8 percent which was 1.6 percent over the corresponding period.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021