Pakistan textile exporters hail interest rate cut (Pakistan)

Textile exporters of Pakistan have welcomed the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) decision to cut interest rate by 150 basis points to 10.5 percent, terming it as a really progressive and supportive step in favour of the country’s textile exports.

 

Hailing SBP’s move to reduce interest rate in the wake of ongoing global economic slump, Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA), Chairman, Rana Arif Tauseef, said the step was very much imperative for revival of the industry and the country’s economy as a whole. 

 

However, he said, such interest rate cut alone cannot bring the country’s trade and industry back on track, as the interest rate is still very high and should be reduced to a single digit, to aid promotion of trade and industry in the country.

 

Such rate cut would boost long-term investment, which if supported by zero load-shedding, would provide a momentum to economic activities across the country, he said.

 

Textile exporters were for long demanding the cut in the interest rate to boost production, which has been badly hit due to several factors, including high interest rate, he added.

 

High mark-up rate and limited availability of cheap credit for the private sector, particularly for establishing new industrial units or reviving the sick ones, are impeding the future investments, the PTEA chief said, and urged the SBP further slash interest rates to bring them down to single digit.