Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Chairman of the Saudi-Pak Business Council, Prince Mansour Bin Muhammad Al Saud, on Friday expressed keen interest in exploring investment opportunities in Pakistan’s motorway infrastructure during a high-level meeting with Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan. Saudi-Pak Business Council show interest in motorway infrastructure investment. The meeting discussed matters of mutual interest and the strategic promotion of bilateral relations including investment in Motorways of Pakistan, said a press release. During the meeting, Abdul Aleem Khan extended invitation to the Saudi Pak Business Council to invest in Pakistan’s rapidly growing infrastructure, specifically highlighting the construction of new Motorways and key transport networks currently underway across the country. Focusing on specific ventures ripe for foreign capital, Federal Minister for Communications offered strategic partnerships in the M-6 Sukkur-Hyderabad, M-10 Karachi Port and M-13 Kharian-Rawalpindi Motorway Projects. He emphasized that these particular routes are highly viable, commercially lucrative and represent prime investment opportunities for the Saudi Business Community due to their significant commercial importance. Chairman Saudi Pakistan Business Council Prince Mansour bin Muhammad Al Saud expressed strong interest on behalf of the Saudi Business Council to explore partnership and investment opportunities in these specific Motorway Projects, affirming that the Council is well-positioned to collaborate extensively in Pakistan’s Communications and infrastructure sectors. During the dialogue, Abdul Aleem Khan assured the delegation that Saudi Investors would be provided with highly viable and profitable investment models, noting that the country’s expanding road network plays a pivotal role in boosting regional trade activities. He reiterated that Pakistan and Saudi Arabia share long-standing, time-tested and deep-rooted fraternal ties, adding that every Pakistani shares a profound spiritual and emotional bond with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia which has consistently demonstrated goodwill towards Pakistan. Concluding the meeting, Chairman Saudi Pakistan Business Council Prince Mansour bin Muhammad Al Saud assured the Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan of full cooperation through his Forum and expressed great optimism regarding the outcomes of his visit to Pakistan. Abdul Aleem Khan reiterated that he highly valued Saudi Arabia’s collaboration in major national projects, emphasizing that the platform of the Saudi Pakistan Business Council will continue to strengthen and solidify the bilateral and economic ties between the two brotherly nations. The Federal Secretary for Communications and high raking officers from both sides where also present in the meeting.

Lahore: President of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), Atif Ikram Sheikh, and Vice President, Qurrat-ul-Ain, while addressing a press conference at the launch of the Pakistan Women Economic Charter 2035, emphasized that Pakistan’s nearly 130 million women constitute 52 percent of the country’s population and represent one of its most valuable sources of human capital. They asserted that such a significant segment of the population cannot be excluded from the national economic decision-making process. They stated that women in Pakistan are not a minority group; rather, they are the nation’s largest economic force and an indispensable pillar of its human resource base. However, despite their critical contribution to the economy, meaningful consultation with women business leaders, women chambers of commerce, women industrialists, exporters, and representative organizations of businesswomen was largely absent during the formulation of the national budget. “We are not seeking special privileges or concessions; we are demanding rightful representation,” they remarked. Speaking on the occasion, Qurrat-ul-Ain highlighted the absence of an effective institutional mechanism to systematically incorporate women’s economic priorities into the budget-making process and broader economic policymaking framework. She urged the Prime Minister of Pakistan and the Federal Minister for Finance to ensure the formal inclusion of women’s representative leadership in all future budget consultations, economic policy formulation, development planning, and economic reform initiatives. Qurat-ul-Ain stressed that the principle of “No decision about women without the participation of women” must be adopted as a cornerstone of national policy. She maintained that economic decisions affecting women cannot be made effectively or equitably without their direct involvement and representation. She further stated that the Pakistan Women Economic Charter 2035 is not merely a policy document but a comprehensive roadmap for Pakistan’s economic growth, competitiveness, export expansion, investment promotion, and long-term prosperity. The FPCCI Vice President also proposed the establishment of a National Women Economic Council under the patronage of the Prime Minister of Pakistan. The proposed council would comprise representatives from the Ministry of Finance, Planning Commission, State Bank of Pakistan, FPCCI, Women Chambers, the private sector, and other relevant stakeholders. Its primary objective would be to institutionalize women’s participation and ensure that their voices are consistently reflected in national economic policymaking and decision-making processes. The FPCCI leadership reaffirmed its commitment to advancing women’s economic empowerment and promoting inclusive growth by ensuring that women play a central role in shaping Pakistan’s economic future.

Karachi: The Pakistan Business Forum (PBF) says the success of the upcoming budget will depend on whether the government can raise revenue from under-taxed sectors instead of placing most of the burden on the already documented business community. Talking to ET on thursday PBF Chief Organiser Ahmad Jawad said that Pakistan’s economic growth has remained stuck at 3 percent average for the past four years, highlighting the urgent need for policies that stimulate investment, production, and employment. “The decision to enter the IMF programme was the government’s own choice. However, the IMF does not require governments to place an additional burden on the business community and the public every year. If the economy is to move forward, meaningful relief measures must be introduced,” he stated. Jawad emphasized that Pakistan’s cost of doing business is currently around 34 percent higher than many countries in the region, making local industries less competitive. He warned that the imposition of new taxes in the upcoming budget could further slow economic activity and push the economy towards stagnation. He also stated that the Ministry of Commerce, in a written submission to the National Assembly Standing Committee on Commerce, acknowledged that Pakistan’s high cost of doing business stems from several structural challenges, including an anti-export bias in the tax regime, limited access to finance, elevated energy costs that undermine industrial competitiveness, and inadequate trade facilitation measures that increase compliance burdens and transaction costs. PBF official stated that these official findings validate the concerns repeatedly raised by the business community and underscore the need for meaningful reforms in the upcoming budget to enhance competitiveness, boost exports, attract investment, and accelerate economic growth. The forum also proposed the abolition of the petroleum levy and its replacement with an 18 percent General Sales Tax (GST) on petroleum products to create a more transparent taxation framework in the new finance bill scheduled on June 10th. Highlighting the importance of the agricultural sector, Jawad described cotton as Pakistan’s “white gold” and called for targeted incentives and relief measures to revive cotton production and strengthen the textile value chain. He further stressed the need for concrete budgetary initiatives to promote the Blue Economy and modernise the agriculture sector, both of which have significant potential to drive sustainable growth and increase exports. “The government must decide whether investment capital should flow towards industry and exports or continue to be diverted into real estate and speculative activities,” the PBF stated. The forum also recommended the introduction of a simplified one-page tax return system instead of the existing lengthy and complex tax filing process. According to PBF, a simplified tax return would encourage greater compliance and help broaden the national tax base. Addressing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, CO PBF Jawad said, “The business community still has high expectations from your leadership. We hope the upcoming budget will provide a clear direction and restore confidence by delivering policies that support growth, investment, and economic stability.” PBF reiterated that a growth-oriented budget, focused on reducing business costs, encouraging productive investment, supporting agriculture, and simplifying taxation, is essential for achieving sustainable economic recovery and long-term prosperity.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Chemicals & Dyes Association (PCDMA) has urged the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to ease the compliance burden on businesses, cut the General Sales Tax (GST) rate, and restore protections for importers in its pre-budget proposals submitted ahead of the federal budget 2026-27. PCDMA Chairman Salim Valimuhammad warned that mounting compliance requirements and aggressive audits are steadily driving taxpayers into the informal economy. “People generally want to pay taxes, but due to limited awareness and tech-savviness they make honest mistakes — and FBR takes advantage of that,” he said, stressing that officers should guide taxpayers instead of issuing harsh notices. “Taxpayers generally want to comply with tax laws, but complicated procedures and lack of guidance often result in genuine mistakes,” Mr. Valimuhammad said, adding that the FBR should adopt a facilitative and educational approach instead of relying on notices and enforcement measures. Among the association’s key recommendations is a reduction in the GST rate from 18 per cent to 16pc, followed by a gradual transition to single-digit taxation. Mr. Valimuhammad argued that lower tax rates would improve compliance, broaden the tax base and ultimately increase government revenues. The PCDMA chairman also called for the restoration of the Final Tax Regime (FTR) for commercial importers and the return of audit exemptions that were previously linked to the payment of additional sales tax. He said the withdrawal of these protections had increased uncertainty and compliance costs for importers. To ease liquidity constraints faced by traders and wholesalers, PCDMA proposed restoring Section 8B facilities for commercial importers. As an interim measure, he suggested allowing businesses to adjust up to 95pc of output tax against input tax, with only 5pc payable in cash. Highlighting concerns over fake invoicing, the PCDMA chief recommended reducing the further tax rate from 4pc to 1pc, arguing that a lower rate would encourage compliance and reduce incentives for fraudulent practices. On income tax, PCDMA proposed lowering withholding tax on local supplies of raw materials from the current rates of 5pc and 5.5pc to 2pc and 2.5pc respectively. He maintained that lower withholding taxes would encourage businesses to operate within the documented economy. The association also objected to what it described as unequal tax treatment between commercial and industrial importers under Section 148 of the Income Tax Ordinance. Mr. Valimuhammad said identical imports should be taxed uniformly, regardless of whether they are imported by traders or manufacturers. Among customs-related proposals, the PCDMA chairman called for the abolition of the Rs500 WeBOC token fee on goods declarations, arguing that importers were effectively paying duplicate charges after the introduction of the Pakistan Single Window (PSW) system. He further sought the restoration of NTN-based self-clearance facilities for commercial importers, saying the withdrawal of the facility had increased delays and administrative bottlenecks at customs offices. PCDMA also recommended discontinuing the Export Facilitation Scheme (EFS), claiming it was vulnerable to misuse and revenue leakage. Instead, he urged the government to strengthen and expedite the tax refund system to support genuine exporters. The proposals have been submitted to the FBR and are expected to be discussed during pre-budget consultations with trade and industry stakeholders ahead of the federal budget announcement.