Govt to take tough decisions to stabilise economy; 25 districts of Balochistan, KP face high risk of polio virus
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday imposed a ban with immediate effect on the import of luxury and non-essential items in order to stem the dwindling foreign exchange reserves amid shaky economic conditions.
Shehbaz Sharif took the decision at a high-level meeting he chaired in Islamabad where the economic situation of the country was reviewed in detail.
The prime minister declared “Precious foreign exchange would not be spent on import of unnecessary and luxury items.”
The participants of the huddle agreed to make harsh decisions to deal with the depleting foreing exchange reserves crisis and the falling rupee, which reached nearly Rs200 in the inter-bank market on Wednesday.
According to the Finance Ministry, the forex exchange reserves have fallen to the lowest level in 22 months which are enough for imports for the next one and a half month.
The sources said that the prime minister has banned the import of luxury vehicles and other non-essential items, including cosmetics, for which instructions have also been issued.
They further added that the decision was taken by the premier due to the widening trade deficit and, after holding a consultative meeting with his coalition partners, it was decided that the government will take tough decisions to stabilise the economy.
According to sources in the Federal Board of Revenue, a proposal to increase duty on the following items has been submitted: Regulatory duty on machinery will be up by 10% and home appliances by 50%, Power generation machinery regulations to go up by 30%, * Steel products regulatory duty to go up by 10%, Duty on cars above 1,000cc to be up by 100% and 30% ACD,
Regulatory duty on ceramics to be up by 40% and duty on mobile phones to rise withing a range of Rs6,000 to Rs44,000 per unit
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb said on Wednesday Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was chairing the National Polio Task Force meeting after a polio case was reported in North Waziristan.
In a tweet, the minister said she was sad to know that polio has resurged again in North Waziristan.
