- Rs 1.8 billion was the export value of spices in Oct 2022, up 36% compared to Rs 1.3 billion in Oct 2021.
- The Lahore High Court hinted at issuing directives to shut down the markets in the provincial capital at 10 pm daily, in addition to complete closure on Sunday due to smog.
- President Dr Arif Alvi and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar met for the second time in 17 days in another attempt to bring the government and the PTI to the table and douse the political fire through dialogue.
- Pakistan requested Saudi Arabia to urgently provide $3 billion in cash after its foreign exchange reserves fell to a critically low level. Saudi Arabia is committed to averting Pakistan’s current economic crisis – worsened recently by climate-change induced flash floods – to help the country achieve political stability and safeguard its national security according to the Kingdom’s former ambassador to Pakistan.
- China announced a nationwide loosening of its hardline Covid restrictions that had hammered the world’s second biggest economy and ignited rare protests against the ruling Communist Party. Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Saudi Arabia for a three-day visit that is likely to focus on energy ties as Beijing strives to revive its economy and Riyadh looks to expand its global alliances.
COMMODITIES - CROPS, LIVESTOCK & HORTICULTURE
- Spices Export: Rs 1.8 billion was the export value of spices in Oct 2022, up 36% compared to Rs 1.3 billion in Oct 2021. [ET]
- Textile Value Chain: All Pakistan Textile Association (APTMA) has urged the federal government for immediate restoration of ‘Zero Rating’ for the entire textile value chain in order to make available working capital for a cash-strapped textile industry. [BR]
AGRI-INPUTS, WEATHER, WATER & POWER
- Post Flood: The government of Japan provided a grant of USD 38.9 million as flood response in addition to USD seven million in September. High levels of malnutrition, stunting and food insecurity continue to threaten the lives of mothers and children in Sindh despite multiple interventions in decades. [BR] [Dawn] [Dawn] [The News] [The Nation]
- Insecticides Import: Rs 3.5 billion was the import value of insecticides in October 2022, up 77.54% compared to Rs 2.02 billion in October 2021, according to the PBS. [ET]
- Gas Crisis: Hours of electricity shutdowns in the summer and hours of gas load shedding in the winters, such is life for the residents of Karachi - who are irked by the additional costs they are having to bear to cook food or keep warm ever since the mercury dropped. Load shedding has led to people either buying LPG, wood, or dung cakes to cook food. [ET]
- Competitive Market Mechanism: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has aired serious concern over an attempt by the power distribution companies (DISCOs) to block the implementation of Competitive Trading Bilateral Contract Market (CTBCM) model, which is aimed at ending the monopoly of existing companies and providing better services to the consumers. [ET]
- M6 Motorway: The National Highway Authority (NHA) has deposited entire amount of over Rs 15 billion with Sindh government for acquiring land for the Hyderabad-Sukkur section of the 306 km M6 project, the last link in Rs 307 billion Peshawar-Karachi Mot-orway project, and prime minister is scheduled to perform its groundbreaking tentatively on Dec 9, according to sources. [Dawn]
- Punjab Gets Four-Day Work Week: AQI was recorded in Lahore, which is deemed very unhealthy. The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Wednesday hinted at issuing directives to shut down the markets in the provincial capital at 10pm daily in addition to complete closure on Sunday due to smog. [Dawn] [ET] [ET]
AGRI UPDATES & PAKISTAN POLICY
- PTI-Govt Reconciliation: President Dr Arif Alvi and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday met for the second time in 17 days in another attempt to bring the government and the PTI to the table and douse the political fire through dialogue. [Dawn] [ET] [DT] [PT]
- Government Loans: The government has been borrowing extensively from the banking system to bridge the widening fiscal gap. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) data showed that the federal government borrowed Rs 1,213 billion from the banks during the first five months of FY23 against the net debt retirement of Rs 38.7bn during July-Nov FY22. [Dawn]
- Business Confidence: Business confidence has nosedived in the last six months across different sectors of the economy, according to the Business Confidence Index (BCI) Survey (Wave-22) released by the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI). [Dawn]
- Govt Urged to Deal with Afghan Refugees: Pakistan needed to deal with the issue of Afghan refugees on humanitarian grounds and enact domestic laws to become a signatory to the international conventions for being the largest host country of refugees, experts said at a panel discussion on Wednesday. [Dawn]
- Saudi Cash Injection: Pakistan on Wednesday requested Saudi Arabia to urgently provide $3 billion in cash after its foreign exchange reserves fell to a critically low level, as the new army chief was also expected to play a role in bagging the bailout during his upcoming maiden visit to the Kingdom. [ET] [ET]
INTERNATIONAL – OVERVIEW & MARKET OUTLOOK
- International Markets: Oil edged to its lowest since the start of the year in volatile trading, after US government data showed an unexpectedly large build in fuel stocks, feeding fears about demand in a market already spooked by an uncertain economy. US stock indexes fell in choppy trading on Wednesday as investors assessed the warnings of a looming recession from major Wall Street bankers, while Apple shares fell on analyst projections of lower iPhone shipments. [BR] [BR]
- VC Funding Decline: Venture capital investments are on track for the sharpest drop in more than two decades this year, surpassing the declines of the dot-com crash and the financial crisis. The value of new VC deals globally is down 42% in the first 11 months of this year, to $286 billion, according to research firm Preqin. [Bloomberg]
- US to Tighten Noose Around TTP, IS-K: The United States has pledged to further tighten the noose around militant groups such as the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) and the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), as the two terrorist outfits step up their activities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. [Dawn]
- Anti-Govt Clashes in Bangladesh: At least one person died on Wednesday and scores were injured in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka as police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at opposition supporters before arresting hundreds, witnesses and police said. [Dawn] [VOA]
- Covid Restrictions in China: China announced on Wednesday a nationwide loosening of its hardline Covid restrictions that had hammered the world’s second biggest economy and ignited rare protests against the ruling Communist Party. [Dawn] [BBC]
- China-Saudi Energy Ties: Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Saudi Arabia for a three-day visit that is likely to focus on energy ties as Beijing strives to revive its economy and Riyadh looks to expand its global alliances beyond its partnerships with the West, especially the United States. [Dawn] [Al Jazeera] [France 24]
- Russia’s Wheat Exports: Wheat exports from Russia, the world’s largest supplier, will be close to record highs in December, if disruptions caused by storms in its main sea route are limited, analysts said. [ET]
- Pakistan to be 6th Top Economy by 2075, a Goldman Sachs research report noted. [Dawn] [ET]
- Opinion: Islamic Finance for Climate - “Capital markets provide a unique opportunity to raise climate funding. Coupled with the presence of Islamic financial institutions in critical emerging markets of the Global South, capital markets could help restructure financing from developed to developing nations. Islamic finance tools such as sukuk (a Sharia-compliant bond) and takaful (an Islamic alternative to insurance) have the potential to bridge the climate funding gap.” - By Maha Qasim & Noor Fatima Anwar [Dawn]
