Eid Holidays, Sindh Wheat Shortage & KCA Spot Rate, Rainfall Expected & Halted Dev Projects, Electric Bike Subsidy

TOPLINE

• The Pakistani government has announced a five-day holiday for Eid-ul-Fitr, which will be observed from Friday, April 21 to Tuesday, April 25.
• PFMA has accused the Sindh Food Department of preventing wheat shipment to flour mills, resulting in price hike and a shortage of flour in Karachi. Moreover, KCA has increased the spot rate by Rs 200/maund, closing it at Rs 19,700/maund.
• Pakistan's chief meteorologist has reassured that normal rainfall is expected between July & Aug 2023 and that the prediction of floods is uncertain due to climate change. Meanwhile, Punjab govt has put a halt on development projects till June 30, including at least 12 mega projects in Rawalpindi.
• The ECC approved a loan scheme to provide E-Bikes/E-Rickshaws on zero percent markup and repayment in three years, aimed at making electric bikes more affordable and reducing carbon emissions.
• Ruling coalition has rejected the SC’s 8 member bench that was set up to hear petitions against Practice and Procedure Bill 2023, while the SC issued an interim order preventing the govt from enforcing a proposed law targeting the suo motu powers of the top judge.
• SBP collected 128.2 billion rupees in the first 8 months of the fiscal year, falling short of the target of Rs 180 billion. The country is facing a budget shortfall due to low fiscal revenue, with total revenue collection decreasing over time, averaging at 12.5% of GDP from 2018-2022. Additionally, forex reserves decreased by $170 million to $4.04 billion as of April 7, leaving only around a month of import cover.
• Saudi Arabia is hosting a regional meeting in Jeddah with nine nations, including Syria's foreign minister, to discuss ending Syria's isolation. This meeting comes after Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed after 7 years.?

COMMODITIES - CROPS, LIVESTOCK & HORTICULTURE

• Karachi Faces Flour Shortage: The Pakistan Flour Mills Association (PFMA) in the Sindh region has accused the Sindh Food Department of preventing the shipment of wheat to flour mills, resulting in a rise in the price of flour and a shortage in Karachi. The PFMA claimed that the government was not supplying wheat as per the official quota to the mills and not allowing the mills to buy wheat from traders, leading to 80% of flour mills in Karachi shutting down operations. [ET]
• Cotton Spot Rate: The Spot Rate Committee of the Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) has increased the spot rate by Rs 200 per maund, closing it at Rs 19,700 per maund. The local cotton market remains bullish, with satisfactory trading volume remaining satisfactory. The rate of cotton in Sindh is in between Rs 17,000 to Rs 20,000 per maund, while the rate of cotton in Punjab is in between Rs 18,000 to Rs 21,000 per maund. The rate of Phutti in Sindh is between Rs 5,500 to Rs 8,300 per 40 kg, and the rate of Phutti in Punjab is between Rs 6,000 to Rs 8,500 per 40 kg. [BR]
• Colonial Laws Evict Farmers: Colonial-era legislation, contradictory to the Constitution of Pakistan and international law, has been used by Ravi Urban Development Authority (RUDA) to evict farmers from their agricultural land, claims a report by non-governmental organization (NGO) Human Rights Watch (HRW). [ET]
• Promoting Legal Trade: Pakistan's Commerce Minister Syed Naveed Qamar has urged Iran to promote the use of legal channels for trade between the two countries and reduce high tariffs on imports of textiles, surgical and sports goods from Pakistan. The discussion was held during a meeting with outgoing Iranian Ambassador Seyed Mohammad Ali Hosseini to enhance bilateral trade and economic ties. [ET]
• Imposes Duty on Tea Whiteners: The Customs classification committee of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in Pakistan has imposed a 20% Customs duty on the import of tea whiteners by leading companies, following a ruling that they should be classified under PCT heading 2106.90900 instead of PCT heading 1901.9090, which the manufacturers had argued. The decision came after a representation was made by the Inland Revenue Service (IRS) challenging the earlier classification ruling of tea whiteners of brand names. [BR]

AGRI-INPUTS, WEATHER, WATER & POWER

• Loan Scheme for E-Bikes: The Economic Coordination Committee approved a loan scheme to provide E-Bikes/E-Rickshaws on zero percent markup and repayment in three years, aimed at making electric bikes more affordable and reducing carbon emissions. The Ministry of Industries and Production presented details on the viability and demand of electric bikes during the meeting. [BR] [Dawn]
• SSGC Records Profit in Q1 2021: Rs 773 million was the profit of Sui Southern Gas Co in the quarter ended Sep 2021 vs loss of Rs 665 million in the previous year. [ET]
• Power Machinery Imports: Rs 10.4 billion was the import value of power generating machinery in Feb 2023, down 37.4% compared to Rs 16.6 billion in Feb 2022. [ET]
• Normal Rainfall Expected: Pakistan's chief meteorologist, Sardar Sarfraz, has reassured that normal rainfall is expected between July and August 2023 and that the prediction of floods is uncertain due to climate change, after the National Disaster Management Authority Chairman had warned of a 72% probability of floods with similar intensity to 2022. The meteorologist predicted around 133 mm of rainfall, which is unlikely to cause flooding, speaking at a seminar titled ‘Will Sindh submerge again?’ in Karachi. [Dawn]
• Punjab Halts Development Projects: The Punjab government and finance ministry has put a halt on ongoing and new development projects till June 30, including at least 12 mega projects in Rawalpindi, such as the Nullah Leh Expressway, sewage treatment plant, Rawalpindi Ring Road, and Chahan and Dadocha dams, which are likely to be affected. [ET]
• Discounted Oil Cap: Pakistan can only avail of the discounted oil facility from Russia within the sanctioned cap of $60 per barrel, according to a parliamentary panel. The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Petroleum approved the “The Gas (Theft control and recovery) Amendment Bill, 2023” with a minor amendment and returned “The Pakistan Petroleum Upstream Regulatory Authority Bill 2022” to the Petroleum Division for further consultation with the provinces. [BR]

AGRI UPDATES & PAKISTAN POLICY

• Eid-ul-Fitr Holidays: The Pakistani government has announced a five-day holiday for Eid-ul-Fitr, which will be observed from Friday, April 21 to Tuesday, April 25, on the recommendation of the Cabinet Division. [BR]
• Ruling Coalition Rejects SC's Bench: The ruling coalition in Pakistan has rejected the Supreme Court’s eight-member bench that was set up to hear petitions against The Supreme Court (Practice and Procedure) Bill 2023, saying it was an attack on the Parliament and its authority. Leaders of the ruling coalition from various political parties demanded the formation of a full court bench to hear the case so that collective wisdom should prevail. [BR] [ET]
• Supreme Court Halts Law: The Supreme Court of Pakistan issued an interim order on Thursday, preventing the government from enforcing a proposed law targeting the suo motu powers of the top judge, saying the move would "prevent imminent apprehended danger that is irreparable" as soon as the bill becomes an act of parliament. The order stated that the act that comes into being shall not have, take or be given any effect nor be acted upon in any manner until further orders. [Dawn]
• National Assembly Briefed on Security: The top military leadership will brief members of the National Assembly on the security situation prevailing in the country during an in-camera sitting of the lower house of parliament on Friday (today) as lawmakers from the newly-created tribal districts of KP forcefully opposed the government’s decision to launch a fresh military operation, vowing to “resist” such an action in the region. [Dawn]
• PPP Forms Committee for Political Dialogue: The PPP has constituted a three-member committee including Syed Yousaf Raza Gillani, Syed Naveed Qamar, and Qamar Zaman Kaira to convince the main political parties in the alliance, the PML-N and JUI-F, to engage in dialogue with the PTI and break the current political impasse. The committee aims to achieve a consensus on dialogue with all political parties in the coalition government. [ET]
• Former PM's Request Rejected: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir Supreme Court rejected the request of former Prime Minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas to suspend the high court's verdict that barred him from serving as a member of the legislative assembly or holding any public office for two years. No further details were provided in the article. [Dawn] [RP] [Geo] [Dunya]
• SBR Collections: 128.2 billion rupees against a target of Rs 180 billion collected by SBR in the first eight months of fiscal year. [ET]
• Pakistan Approves PIA Bailout: The Pakistani government has approved a Rs 15.6 billion bailout package for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and a Rs 7.5 billion interest-free loan scheme for the purchase of environmentally-friendly motorbikes. The Economic Coordination Committee also approved increasing sovereign guarantees for PIA, which had requested a Rs 45 billion bailout package, but only the issue of sovereign guarantees was discussed during the meeting. [ET]
• Pakistan Faces Fiscal Shortfall: According to a report by the World Bank, Pakistan is facing a budget shortfall due to persistent low fiscal revenue, with total revenue collection falling over time, averaging at 12.5% of GDP from 2018-2022, down from the 2013-2017 average of 13.2%, and lower than the South Asian average of 19.6%. Tax revenue collection is also low, averaging at 10.3% of GDP over the past decade. [BR]
• Concerns over Pakistan's Reserves: Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) decreased by $170 million to $4.04 billion as of April 7, bringing the overall number to a critical level of around a month of import cover. A delay in an agreement with the IMF is taking a toll on the economy, particularly the rupee, and a shortage of foreign currency reserves has added pressure on the economy that relies heavily on imports to run its engines. [BR] [Dawn] [ET] [The News] [MG]

INTERNATIONAL – OVERVIEW & MARKET OUTLOOK

• Closing Gender Gap: A UN report has stated that closing the gender gap in the agriculture and food system would add $1 trillion to the global economy. Women occupy a “marginal” place in agrifood systems and face difficult work conditions such as casual, part-time, informal or low-skilled jobs, while also having less access to land, resources, financing or technology compared to men. [BR]
• US Stocks Rise on Producer Prices: US stock indexes rose on Thursday after a Labor Department report showed producer prices unexpectedly fell in March as the cost of gasoline declined, and there were signs that underlying producer inflation was subsiding. Additionally, data showed that the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased more than expected last week, a further sign that labor market conditions were loosening up. [BR]
• Palm Oil Prices Fall: Malaysian palm oil futures slid for a second straight session on Thursday, to their lowest closing price in two weeks, weighed by softer rival oils and a firmer ringgit. The benchmark palm oil contract for June delivery on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange dropped 1.59% to 3,715 ringgit ($844.70) a tonne. The contract has lost 2.08% so far this week. [BR]
• Russia Blocks Ukrainian Forces: Russia claimed on Thursday that it had blocked Ukrainian forces inside Bakhmut, but Ukraine insisted that supply lines were still open into the town. The Russian army said its airborne troops were "blocking the transfer of Ukrainian army reserves to the city and the possibility of retreat for enemy units," but the Ukrainian army said it was able to send its troops inside Bakhmut ammunition and other supplies. [Dawn]
• Trump Questioned in Fraud Lawsuit: Former US President Donald Trump was questioned behind closed doors in a $250 million civil fraud lawsuit against him by the state's attorney general in New York on Thursday. Trump was asked about his business practices, and the lawsuit accuses him of manipulating property values and his net worth to obtain favourable loans and tax benefits. [Dawn] [Reuters] [ABC News]
• Syria Attends Regional Talks: Saudi Arabia is hosting a regional meeting in Jeddah with nine nations, including Syria's foreign minister, to discuss ending Syria's isolation. This meeting comes after Saudi Arabia and Iran agreed to restore ties, seven years after an acrimonious split, which was a nearly unthinkable event before the announcement. [DS] [N] [ET] [Gulf News]
• Twitter - Cash for Content: Twitter is allowing users to charge for access to their content, “from longform text to hours-long video,” owner Elon Musk revealed in a post on the site. Musk said that for the first 12 months, Twitter won’t keep any of the money users make from subscriptions. The move puts Twitter head-to-head with Substack, the newsletter company with similar money-making options. Meanwhile, in the US, Public Broadcasting Service has followed National Public Radio in quitting Twitter after the platform labeled both organizations as government-backed media. [Bloomberg] [Bloomberg]

PAKISTAN - REMAINDERS

• TikTok took down over 12 million videos from Pakistan in 3 months. [Dawn] [ET]
• Karachi's Digital Census: The digital census in Karachi, Pakistan has counted 14.473 million people, less than the previous census, and is facing accusations of irregularities and lack of transparency. The enumerators have complained about inadequate resources and poor training, and there have been technical problems with tablets used for data collection, causing undercounts in some areas, with polio workers now re-verifying specific houses to ensure accuracy. [ET]
• Opinion: Growth Versus Deprivation - “Despite delivering impressive levels of productivity, which have strained the carrying capacity of Earth itself, it is highly unlikely that the prevailing global economic model will be able to get rid of the scourge of extreme poverty. Even entities which help manage the global political economy, like the World Bank and the IMF, recognise that an end of absolute poverty anytime soon remains unlikely.” - By Syed Mohammad Ali [ET]