- The Sindh Government has approved Rs 350 million for the establishment of phytotron tunnels for speedy research and development in order to introduce new rice varieties.
- The Prime Minister Relief Fund worth Rs5 billion has been allocated for flood victims. Relief in the form of cash is being given to the flood victims.
- The Sindh government has declared 23 districts of the province calamity-hit where the torrential rains played havoc. Traffic routes between Balochistan and Sindh remained suspended on Monday after heavy rainfall in Naseerabad and Jaffarabad districts inundated the connecting highway.
- The Federal Government has reportedly backed out from its decision to supply electricity to five export-oriented sectors (erstwhile zero rated sectors) at cents 9 per unit for the entire current fiscal year (CFY 2022-23).
- Iran accused the United States on Monday of procrastinating in indirect talks aimed at reinstating Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal, and said a prisoner swap with Washington was not linked to the negotiations.
COMMODITIES - CROPS, LIVESTOCK & HORTICULTURE
- Rice Research: Sindh Government has approved Rs 350 million for the establishment of phytotron tunnels for speedy research and development in order to introduce new rice varieties within the shortest possible time. [ET]
- Cotton Spot Rate: The Spot Rate Committee of the Karachi Cotton Association (KCA) on Monday increased the spot rate by Rs 1,000 per maund and was available at Rs 21,000 per maund.? [BR]
AGRI-INPUTS, WEATHER, WATER & POWER
- Rehabilitation of Flood Victims:? The Prime Minister Relief Fund worth Rs5 billion has been allocated for flood victims. Relief in the form of cash is being given to the flood victims on the instructions of the prime minister. The media also informed the public about the program regarding the distribution of 25,000 rupees per household. One million rupees are being provided to the families of those who died in the flood. Flood victims from Pai village in Tank district blocked the South Waziristan Highway to protest the ‘denial’ of compensation announced by the federal and provincial governments. [BR] [BR] [Dawn] [ET]
- Calamity-Hit Districts: The Sindh government has declared 23 districts of the province calamity-hit where the torrential rains played havoc causing heavy loss of human life, livestock and standing Kharif crops besides destroying thousands of mud-thatched houses, roads and bridges. More than 25 people were killed in incidents of roof collapse over the last 24 hours as back-to-back heavy spells of rains played havoc with concrete and thatched structures. Death toll from rain-induced floods in Taunsa Sharif reaches 18. 862mm downpour was recorded in Gulshan-e-Hadeed during the monsoon season so far. Traffic routes between Balochistan and Sindh remained suspended on Monday after heavy rainfall in Naseerabad and Jaffarabad districts inundated the connecting highway in Dera Murad Jamali and Dera Allah Yar. [Dawn] [Dawn] [ET] [ET] [The News] [ET] [ET]
- Inflated Electricity Bills: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has sought a report regarding complaints by consumers of inflated electricity bills. Hundreds of people held a protest at Rajana Chowk on Monday and blocked traffic bound for Multan, Faisalabad, Jhang and Chichawatni against the Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (Fesco) over ‘inflated’ domestic and commercial bills on the ‘pretext’ of fuel price adjustment (FPA). [BR] [Dawn] [ET]
- Subsidised Power Decision: In a major U-turn, the Federal Government has reportedly backed out from its decision to supply electricity to five export-oriented sectors (erstwhile zero rated sectors) at cents 9 per unit for the entire current fiscal year (CFY 2022-23) after a summary approved by the Prime Minister was sent by the Finance Division in “violation” of rules of business 1974, well informed sources in Commerce Ministry told Business Recorder. [BR]
- Hydropower Project: The Private Power & Infrastructure Board (PPIB) has given a fourth extension in Letter of Support (LoS) to 700-MW M/s Azad Pattan Hydropower Project for another year starting from January 1, 2022. The company was issued Letter of Support on June 30, 2016 as amended on September 19, 2018, September 27, 2019 and April 26, 2021. [BR]
- Water Level at Mangla: 1,177 feet was the level of water at Mangla Dam following heavy rains in the country. [ET]
- Fertiliser Prices: The government is working on a plan to introduce uniform gas prices for fertiliser manufacturers. Two new fertiliser plants have been receiving gas at lower prices as compared to other plants. Despite this, they have been charging higher prices from farmers. [ET]
- Internet Outage: A large number of internet users, mainly in Karachi, faced outages on Thursday evening as the submarine cable system SEAMEWE-5, extending from Singapore to France and Italy, was damaged. [Dawn] [ET]
AGRI UPDATES & PAKISTAN POLICY
- Ordinance Promulgated: President Arif Alvi Monday signed the Tax Laws? Ordinance 2022 for additional taxation on the tobacco industry of Rs36 billion, sales tax exemption to single cylinder agriculture diesel engines, exemption of Capital Value Tax for the passenger/goods transport vehicles and vehicles of foreign diplomats and foreign diplomatic missions and restoration of old tax scheme for small traders/retailers prevailing prior to Finance Act 2022. [BR] [ET]
- Loan Resumption: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) will consider the combined seventh and eighth review on August 29. The Fund updated its website according to which the board meeting will be held on August 29. [BR]
- Interest Rate Unchanged: The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has decided to maintain the policy rate unchanged at 15 percent due to some positive developments on the domestic and external front. [BR] [Dawn] [ET]
- Pakistan to Get $2 Billion from Qatar: Pakistan will receive $2 billion from Qatar in bilateral support to help ease the South Asian nations funding crunch and the consequent risk of a default, the central bank said on Monday. [Bloomberg] [The News]
- Imran Faces Contempt Proceedings: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday constituted a larger bench to initiate contempt of court proceedings against PTI Chairman and former premier Imran Khan for “threatening” Additional Sessions Judge Zeba Chaudhry during his speech in Islamabad on Saturday. [Dawn][ET]
INTERNATIONAL – OVERVIEW & MARKET OUTLOOK
- Russia Ukraine War: Nearly 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since Russia invaded, the country’s top military officer said on Monday, two days before the country’s independence anniversary. [Dawn] [ET]
- Iran Nuclear Deal: Iran accused the United States on Monday of procrastinating in indirect talks aimed at reinstating Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal, and said a prisoner swap with Washington was not linked to the negotiations. [Dawn] [ET] [Al Jazeera]
- US-South Korea Military Drills: South Korea and the United States have launched their largest joint military drills in years, officials said, as the allies seek to tighten readiness over North Korea’s potential weapons tests. [Al Jazeera] [The Guardian]
- Oil Prices: Oil prices bounced off session lows to trade nearly flat in a volatile session on Monday, after the Saudi energy minister said OPEC could cut production to confront market challenges. [ET]
- Opinion: The Green Transition Is Happening Fast. The Climate Bill Will Only Speed It Up: - “The bill, signed into law by President Biden on Tuesday, makes $369 billion in climate and energy investments — by far the largest such investment in American history. Its many supporters have called it transformational and a game changer.” - By David Wallace-Wells [NYT]
- Trophy Hunting Likely to be Put Off: The Ministry of Climate Change is likely to postpone the trophy hunting programme this year, which may result in a loss of millions of dollars in foreign exchange. [ET]
- Opinion: Nexus between climate change and corruption - “The continued floods in parts of Balochistan and Sindh demonstrate both our inability to confront climate change, and our insistence on blaming climate change for our inability to govern, plan and deliver.” - By Muhammad Hamid Zaman [ET]
