ISLAMABAD: Growth rate would remain below five percent if agriculture, manufacturing and remittances are not given importance in the next budget.
United International Group Chairman Mian Shahid said this during a meeting with Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders Patron Shahid Rasheed Butt.
Mian Shahid said that recent cut in the interest rate is good move but it can discourage depositors who are now getting five percent profit, adding that five percent profit in presence of 4.5 percent inflation is enough to frustrate many to find other avenues for investment including foreign countries which must be contained.
Shahid said that the State Bank of Pakistan’s move may not go down well with the business community which has obtained Rs161 billion loans in the ongoing fiscal as compare to Rs292 billion last year. He said that reduced lending also speaks of preferences and restraint observed by the commercial banks.
