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IMF nod awaited to provide relief to consumers using up to 300 units in Oct bills

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1 year ago

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  • Rs13,000 relief to be provided in Rs60,000 to Rs70,000 power bills.
  • IMF seeks more data from govt regarding suggestions for relief.
  • Talks underway between IMF, interim govt for electricity relief.

ISLAMABAD: Amid nationwide protests over inflated electricity bills, the caretaker government has reportedly chalked out a plan to provide relief to the power consumers, Geo News has learnt.

Sources told Geo News the interim government has decided to provide relief of up to Rs3,000 to consumers using up to 300 units in October’s electricity bills.

Likewise, the sources said power consumers whose electricity bills are of Rs60,000 to Rs70,000, will benefit from a reduction of Rs13,000.

Meanwhile, the insiders said talks between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the caretaker government are underway on the matter of providing relief to the power consumers

Meanwhile, The News reported that the Washington-based global lender has sought more data from the Power Division for its decision on various suggestions forwarded to the Fund seeking relief in the increased bills for August and September.

“We have shared the required data with the Fund people hoping that IMF may today (Monday) come up with its response with a yes or no to the assertions of the Finance and Power Divisions, seeking permission for relief to inflation-stricken people in electricity bills,” some top sources engaged with the IMF told The News.

“At the moment, authorities of both Power and Finance divisions are in hectic talks with the Fund people on the data related to suggested measures for solace in power tariffs and their possible impact on circular debt, cash flow situation and further delays to IPPs, ultimately making the power sector more unsustainable.”

Following continuous protests by citizens and traders, who have taken to the streets against the exorbitant hikes in power bills and addition of taxes, the caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar-led setup in Islamabad has been trying to woo the global lender to agree to provide immediate relief for electricity consumers in the cash-strapped country, where people are already battered by skyrocketing inflation.

The interim premier, on August 31, had assured about the likelihood of the Fund nodding to the government’s relief-related proposal — aimed at providing relief to the public — in 48 hours, but it kept waiting to hear back after the deadline elapsed.

The IMF was earlier briefed about the said proposal, under which some portion of the tariff — up to 30% for August and September — would be scaled down and the impact of reduced tariff would be passed on to consumers in six months of the winter season, from October 2023 toMarch 2024 in a staggered manner.

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Minister of Finance Reaffirms Unwavering Support for APM Terminals Group in Effort to Strengthen Bilateral Cooperation

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Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb, Pakistan’s Minister of Finance, has promised the APM Terminals Group his full support in creating an environment that is both business-friendly and conducive to investment.

In Islamabad, he met with a group of APM terminals who had come to hear him speak. Keith Svendsen, CEO of APM Terminals, was in charge of the group.

Muhammad Aurangzeb, a senator from Pakistan, expressed his approval of APM Terminals’ investment plans.

Following last month’s signing of a memorandum of agreement to strengthen bilateral cooperation, the meeting’s emphasis was on the actions taken to date.

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Pakistan’s gold prices are declining.

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2 days ago

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Ten grams of 24 carat gold also had a price decrease of Rs. 1,115, from Rs. 239,026 to Rs. 237,911, while ten kilos of 22 carat gold saw a rise in price from Rs. 219,107 to Rs. 218.085.

The cost of ten grams of silver and one tola of silver stayed at Rs. 2,829.21 and Rs. 3,300, respectively.

As stated by the Association, the price of gold fell $13 to $2,670 on the global market.

On Monday, November 11, 24-karat gold prices fell to 3,771 Saudi Riyals (SAR) per tola in Saudi Arabia.

The price of 24-kar gold is SAR 10,067 per ounce, while 10 grams of the metal are being sold for SAR 3,237 in the kingdom, according to forex.pk.

Note: Since the prices were updated at 10:15 am on November 11, 2024, there may be some discrepancies in this post due to the dynamic nature of the gold market globally, especially in Saudi Arabia.

As the markets anticipate the Federal Reserve to take a cautious stance under U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s administration, gold prices fell for a second session on Monday due to a stronger dollar and heightened risk appetite.

As of 09:27 GMT, spot gold was down 0.6% to $2,666.48 an ounce. The price of US gold futures dropped 0.8% to $2,673.20.

“A stronger U.S. dollar, rising Treasury yields, and increased risk appetite in financial markets are the main reasons why gold prices have declined — a trend that has gained momentum since Donald Trump’s victory in last week’s presidential election,” said Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades.

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Prices for cooking oil and ghee have increased in Pakistan.

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Details show that although the price of ghee increased to Rs 550, the price of cooking oil increased by Rs 30 to Rs 560.

The market vendors said that the cost of Karachi-branded ghee had increased by an astounding Rs 120 over the past month, to Rs 500.

The Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI), which measures weekly inflation, increased by 0.28 percent for all consumer categories during the week ending October 17, according to a report released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on October 18.

In the aforementioned group, the SPI for the week under review was 319.79 points, compared to 318.91 points the previous week, according to the PBS statistics.

In the week under examination, the SPI for the combined consumption group increased by 15.02 percent compared to the same week last year.

51 important goods for all expenditure groups and 17 urban centers are covered by the weekly SPI with base year 2015–16 = 100.

Additionally, the SPI for the lowest consumption category, which is up to Rs 17,732, increased by 0.27 percent from 312.91 points last week to 313.74 points.

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