Punjab CM, Japanese envoy discuss ways to strengthen bilateral trade & investment

Lahore: Japanese Ambassador in Pakistan, Wada Mitsuhiro met Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz in Lahore on Sunday.

During meeting, both discussed ways to strengthen bilateral trade and investment.

They reviewed exchange of cultural and academic delegations between Punjab and Japan and agreed in principle for promoting faculty programs for students.

In a separate development, the State Bank of Pakistan released a half year report on the state of the country's economy.

According to the report, the country’s macroeconomic conditions improved during the first half of the financial year 24 and the real economic activities moderately recovered against the contraction last year.

It noted that the current account deficit narrowed considerably, amid continued contractionary monetary and fiscal policies, better agricultural produce and ease in global commodity prices.

The real GDP, driven by the agriculture sector, grew by 1.7 percent in H1-FY24.

The recovery in the agriculture sector also supported some of the agro-based industries. In addition, withdrawal of import prioritization measures improved availability of raw materials for industry.

The report highlighted that despite some improvement in macroeconomic indicators, the economy continues to grapple with the structural bottlenecks. The major issues include limited savings, low investments in physical and human capital, weak productivity, stagnant exports, narrow tax base, and inefficiencies in Public Sector Enterprises (PSEs).

The report noted that despite restrained domestic demand, inflationary pressures remained persistent at elevated levels.

The Report expected continuation of modest economic recovery in the second half of FY24.