<\/p>\n
Interim Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar said on Friday there were \u201csome signs\u201d of economic recovery \u201ceven if they were just starting\u201d.<\/p>\n
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad alongside other federal ministers, she said that while the interim set-up had inherited a set of challenges after coming into power, it was not worried and was \u201cdealing\u201d with them.<\/p>\n
Akhtar said that the government was trying to manage the country\u2019s challenges prudently by controlling expenditures and enhancing revenue. \u201cThrough this, the situation will improve.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo if you review macroeconomic indictors, you will see some improvement. There are some signs of economic recovery even if its just starting.\u201d<\/p>\n
The minister said that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) had shown a decline from May figures, down from 38 per cent to 27pc. \u201cThis is a very important indicator that (shows) that we have come out of difficulty,\u201d she said, hoping that there would be stability in prices going forward.<\/p>\n
Akhtar said that the country\u2019s productive sectors had also seen some improvement. \u201cBy productive sector, I mean the agriculture sector. In this agriculture sector, we hope that our results will be good: whether its got to do with major crops or minor crops. Improved agriculture results will also improve our growth prospects.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said that while some people complained about the difficulties being faced by industries, the government had examined the data which showed that there some improvement in some productive sectors.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs activity is picking up, the situation of industries is also improving.\u201d<\/p>\n
The minister said that the services sector, which she described as being \u201cvibrant\u201d at the moment, was linked to all other sectors.<\/p>\n
Talking about the central bank\u2019s decision to maintain the key policy rate, Akhtar said that the move would also bring \u201cimprovement\u201d as the cost of borrowing of industries would fall.<\/p>\n
She said that the government had spoken to international donors. She said that she had spoken to the World Bank (WB) and the government was trying that the cumulative assistance comes up to $2 billion.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur focus is working on activities which will help our people and build confidence in Pakistan\u2019s economy so that foreign direct investment comes into the country.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said that the government and the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) were taking certain steps in this regard. She said that the economy would enter \u201cself-sustaining growth\u201d if issues relating to foreign direct investment were removed.<\/p>\n
She said that the country\u2019s foreign exchange reserves were \u201cstable\u201d even if they weren\u2019t very high. \u201cAccording to our outflow and inflow, it is quite stable in my view.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also commented on the government\u2019s crackdown against exchange companies, saying that it had resulted in the rupee stabilising to \u201csome extent\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd this stability came without any intervention from banks,\u201d she said, terming it to be a \u201cpositive\u201d development. Akhtar said that the government was working tirelessly, the results of which would become apparent \u201cin due course\u201d.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Power Minister Muhammad Ali said the government has decided to stagger quarterly adjustments \u2014 spread over three months \u2014 in power bills to provide relief to consumers. Similar relief measures would also be provided in the payment of the base electricity tariff in Karachi.<\/p>\n
He also noted that the government\u2019s crackdown on electricity theft across the country was yielding good results.<\/p>\n