New export package to be announced soon: Miftah

ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister, Dr Miftah Ismail Tuesday said that government would soon announce a new package to provide incentives to the exporters aimed at promoting external trade of the country.

“On the special directive of Prime Minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, we are formulating a new export package, which will be announced in next few days,” he said while winding up the budget debate in the National Assembly.

He said that earlier the former Prime Minister Mohammad Nawaz Sharif had announced an export package in January 2017, to help overcome the problems faced by exporters at that time. That package would end on June 30, 2018, he added.

Miftah said that although the devaluation had helped export sector to overcome the challenges of competitiveness in the international market and resolved the rebate problems to a great extent, yet the government has decided to announce a new export package.

To various questions raised by opposition members during the budget speeches, he said recession in the international market, energy crisis and internal security issues had impacted the exports negatively.

He said that the government had resolved the energy and security issues on emergency basis, besides the exporters' problems were also addressed, which had increased the country's exports.

The minister said that the exchange rate adjustments also helped in enhancing exports, which witnessed an increase of 24 percent in March 2018, and 18 percent in April 2018.

On the other hand, he said that country's imports increased mainly due to import of machinery and petroleum products. The imports witnessed 2 percent increase in April 2018, he added.