WASHINGTON: The Ministry of Finance spokesperson Muzammil Aslam has discarded the news about a dialogue failure between Pakistan and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
“Talks with the IMF will resume on Monday”, Muzzamil said.
Muzammil said the Secretary Finance and his team are still in Washington for negotiations with the IMF.
“There is no deadline for negotiations to end. Negotiations with the IMF will continue until gaining success.”
Muzzamil also claimed that earlier, the government was imposing high taxes but now it is levying less.
“On the other side of the wall, the Sindh government has not taken any initiative to sort out the wheat issue in the province”, Muzammil added.
Earlier, the fresh round of talks between Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund for the release of $1 billion loan tranche and a good economic certificate to the nation has remained inconclusive.
The talks held from October 4 to 15 failed to reach a policy-level agreement because of differences over the macroeconomic framework and uncertainty over the future of Pakistan’s economy.
Federal Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin who led the Pakistani delegation into the talks with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva could not succeed in persuading the IMF chief regarding the economic steps taken by the Pakistani government.
According to sources, the IMF team wanted the Pakistani government to introduce more taxes. The Fund team had already shot down Tarin’s proposal of not withdrawing the subsidies, the sources added.
Both sides, however, agreed to continue the talks regarding revival of the loan programme.
It was reportedly for the second time that Pakistan and the IMF could not find “basis for the completion of the 6th review”, as its first attempt made in June also remained futile.
On the second leg of his visit, Shaukat Tarin along with State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Syed Reza Baqir has reached New York City.
