Economic situation to 'stabilise' in coming two to four months, Tarin claims

Islamabad: Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Shaukat Tarin Friday claimed the economy and the economic situation in Pakistan "is moving in the right direction" and that the economic situation would move toward stability in coming two to four months.

He further said exports and remittances would shrink Pakistan's widening trade gap.

The adviser, who was flanked by Adviser to Prime Minister on Commerce and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood, was speaking at a press conference

Tarin said anxiety among the investors caused owing to a historic high trade deficit.

"An increase in revenue means that the country's economy is growing," Tarin said, highlighting that our exports and remittances have also increased significantly.

He mentioned that rising commodity prices in the international market have increased the import bill by $1.5 billion.

Shedding light on soaring inflation, Tarin said that the items whose prices increased were all imported goods.

"Revenue is now 36% higher than last year," he said, adding that inflation is rising globally.

The adviser mentioned that domestic inflation is lower than last year.

The adviser assured that the next two to four months will be difficult, however, "things will get better."

"No need to panic," Tarin reiterated, asserting that the [government] understands that the common man is under pressure and hence, it is working to provide relief to the masses.

The PM's aide urged people to have patience as prices will eventually come down.

Abdul Razak Dawood, speaking to reporters, highlighted that imports clocked in at $7.7 billion in November, which is up by $1.14 billion as compared to October.

The adviser on commerce expressed satisfaction over the increase in imports of raw material, adding that imports of machinery and energy are increasing.

"I believe there is nothing to panic about," he said. Endorsing his views, Tarin added that people should only panic if the situation persists until February or March.

Explaining further, he said the agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would come into effect in March,

"It is the working class that is suffering but profits of listed companies have increased by Rs900 billion," he said observed.