Day: December 30, 2021

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) raised Rs. 1.26 trillion against a target of Rs. 1.2 trillion in the most recent treasury bill auction on Wednesday.

Despite the big money raise, cut-off yields in the auction had a slight dip in three-month and six-month papers as opposed to expert estimates.

The three-month paper’s cut-off yield fell by 19 basis points to 10.59 percent while the six-month paper’s yield fell five basis points to 11.45 percent. The yield on the 12-month paper remained at 11.51 percent, unchanged from the auction on 15 December.

Despite the considerable liquidity pushed into the money market by the central bank through open market operations (OMOs) of exceptionally long tenures in the last two weeks, rates have fallen marginally as opposed to the numbers observed during the 15 December auction.

The SBP had staged two 63-day OMOs in the recent two weeks to lend banks a total of Rs. 1.07 trillion in cash. As banks had adequate capital to bid for treasury bills, experts forecast that the auction on 29 December will be held at lower rates than before.

Overall, the cut-off yields on all the government bonds increased significantly in the last 18 months, and the yield on the three-month paper is holding around 10.25 percent in the secondary market.

According to experts, secondary market yields will soar as soon as the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics issues November’s inflation data, which is expected to be between 12-12.5 percent.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) and Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to implement an e-Filing & Office Automation System (e-FOAS) for the national flag carrier.

The MoU was signed by Chairman PITB, Azfar Manzoor, and CEO PIA, Air Marshal (Rtd.) Arshad Malik, in a ceremony held at Arfa Software Technology Park.

According to the MoU, e-FOAS will help PIA in improving organizational efficiency, digitization of workflows, and timely decision-making. It will also facilitate effective management of daily operations by making the routine correspondence digitally accessible round-the-clock.

During the ceremony, Chairman PITB, Azfar Manzoor, gave a detailed brief on various ICT interventions by PITB. DG e-Governance, Sajid Latif, gave a presentation on e-FOAS, while Additional DG (Citizen Facilitation Services), Muhammad Waseem Bhatti, gave an overview of Citizen Facilitation Services (CFS).

Senior officials from both organizations, including PIA’s Advisor to CEO, Air Vice Marshal Amir Hayat, CIO PIA, Syed Asad Hasnain Bukhari, GM HR, Athar Hussain, DGM IT, Syed Bakir Naqvi, DM LHE, Dr. Muqaddam Khan, and PITB’s Joint Director, Khawar Hafeez, were also present at the event.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The federal government will cover the entire cost of the development of Reqo Diq, which is one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold mines in Balochistan.

Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan tweeted the declaration after criticism from the province’s political leaders who had slammed the Reko Diq project’s proposed deal.

He said, “In line with my govt’s vision for [the] uplift of smaller provinces, I have decided our fed govt will bear all the financial burden for Reko Diq & its development on behalf of Govt of Balochistan”.

The premier ibelieves that the action will help to usher in a new age of prosperity for the people of Balochistan and the province.

The Chief Minister of Balochistan, Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, praised PM Khan for the federal government’s undertaking, and reiterated his remarks that the historic move will bring peace and prosperity to the province.

The Chief Minister of Balochistan, Mir Abdul Quddus Bizenjo, praised PM Khan for the federal government’s undertaking, and reiterated his remarks that the historic move will bring peace and prosperity to the province.

Tethyan Copper Company Pakistan (Pvt.) Limited is a fully owned joint venture company of Barrick Gold of Canada and Antofagasta Minerals of Chile that originally discovered huge mineral deposits at Reko Diq at the foot of an extinct volcano near Pakistan’s border with Iran and Afghanistan more than a decade ago.

At the time of the discovery, prominent authorities asserted that the deposit had the potential to be one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper and gold mines.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The Pakistani Rupee (PKR) has finally reversed its losing streak against the US Dollar (USD) and appreciated by 72 paisas against the greenback in the interbank market today. However, it hit an intra-day low of Rs. 178.57 against the USD during today’s open market session.

The PKR appreciated by 0.41 percent against the USD and closed at Rs. 177.51 today after closing at an all-time low of 178.24 in the interbank market on Wednesday, 29 December.

The rupee has recovered by 0.41 percent on a day-to-day basis, posting its highest every recovery against the dollar after 31 sessions. So far, the local currency has lost 11.25 percent on a fiscal-year-to-date basis, besides depreciating by 14.22 percent on a calendar-year-to-date basis.

Resultantly, today’s gains give the exchange ledger some respite as the focus progressively switches towards adapting the newly approved mini-budget. This amendment, which is valued over Rs. 360 billion, is likely to help the local currency weather the storm of inflationary pressures and may offer clarity on how it will fare in the face of near-term economic uncertainties.

Discussing the rupee’s near-term outlook earlier in the day, the former Treasury Head of Chase Manhattan Bank, Asad Rizvi, tweeted, “As we are approaching year-end there is nothing much to talk about Rupee, as corporate sector[s] have squared their books. It’s the year-end payments that make PKR vulnerable. However, to manage cash flows, Rs/$ short-dated swaps will remain active in the interbank market”.

The PKR reversed its declining trend against other major currencies in an impressive highlight of encouraging gains. It posted gains of 10 paisas against the Pound Sterling (GBP), 40 paisas against the Canadian Dollar (CAD), and 10 paisas against the Euro (EUR).

It also gained 18 paisas against the Saudi Riyal (SAR) and 19 paisas against the UAE Dirham (AED) in today’s interbank currency market.

Moreover, the rupee appreciated against the Australian Dollar (AUD) and posted gains of 12 paisas in today’s interbank currency market.

Source: Pro Pakistani

As part of its objective to promote ease of doing business, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has issued a procedural guide on the formation and licensing of Nonbank Finance Companies (NBFCs) in order to facilitate the prospective investors of the sector.

Available on the SECP’s website, this guidebook provides comprehensive information on the procedure for formation, incorporation, and licensing of NBFCs, in addition to details of applicable fees, other important pre-requisites, reference to the relevant legal provisions, forms, and formats.

The guide covers applicable requirements for the formation and licensing of Fund Management NBFCs as well as Lending NBFCs. Fund Management NBFCs provide services including Asset Management, Investment Advisory, REIT [real estate management trust] Management, Private Equity & Venture Capital Management, and pension fund schemes. Lending NBFCs provide services including Investment Finance Services, Discounting, Housing Finance, Microfinance, and Leasing.

By consolidating all the applicable requirements in one place, the guidebook would make it easier for prospective investors to understand and comply with the applicable regulatory regime.

Source: Pro Pakistani

The foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) fell week-over-week by $298 million (1.64 percent).

According to the central bank’s weekly report released on Thursday, the country’s total liquid foreign exchange reserves went down on December 24, 2021 to $24.2 billion. SBP’s reserves fell by $298.4 million to $17.855 billion during the week under review, compared to $18.153 billion on December 17.

Meanwhile, the net foreign reserves held by the commercial banks amounted to $6.4 billion, depicting a decline of $11 million on a weekly basis. Overall, the liquid foreign currency reserves held by the country, including net reserves held by banks other than the Central Bank stood at $24,273.6 million, down $359 million on a week-over-week basis.

In the last 21 days alone, the foreign exchange reserves saw an outflow of $877 million on different accounts from debt payment to high imports cost.

It is pertinent to note that back in August 2021, the foreign exchange reserves held by SBP umped to an all-time high of $20.15 billion after Pakistan received a general allocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) worth $2,751.8 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on August 24. However, the bank’s reserves began to decline steadily during the same month, which the bank attributed to the fulfillment of debt repayments and other related regulations.

Meanwhile, the Pakistani Rupee (PKR) finally stopped its losing streak against the US Dollar (USD) and appreciated by 72 paisas against the greenback in the interbank market on Thursday. It closed at Rs. 177.51 after closing at an all-time low of 178.24 in the interbank market on 29 December.

Source: Pro Pakistani