TC March - April 2016

www.tradechronicle.com Vol. 63 Issue Nos. 03 & 04 March-April 2016 Rs. 200/- 

Trade Chronicle 

PAKISTAN'S LEADING MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF COMMERCE, INDUSTRY & PUBLIC AFFAIRS 

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Founded by: 

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Editor: 

ABDUL RAB SIDDIQI 

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ABDUL RAFAY SIDDIQI 

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EDITORIAL 

Strategic Trade Policy Framework for 

2015-18: Export target looks challenging 

COMMENTS 

New Auto policy: hopefully attracts fresh investors 

Water crisis in Gwadar port 

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ARTICLES & FEATURES 

Special Report on Pakistan Day 

Turning dreams into reality 

The 12th International Safe Secure Exhibition - 2016 

concludes successfully 

FFBL – An ICON of Excellence 

SBP says strong LSM output to bolster growth 

Economy picking up; inflation behaving despite challenges 

By Shahnawaz Akhter 

The ‘E’ in CPEC 

By Aadil Nakhoda 

CPEC’s first phase to be completed 

by 2018: minister 

Trade policy sets export target at $35bn 

Representative in Lahore 

Humayun Iqbal 

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REGULAR FEATURES 

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Trade Chronicle - March - April 2016 - Page # 05

TRADE CHRONICLE 

We begin with the name of Allah, the Magnificient 

From 

Editor's 

Desk 

ABDUL RAB SIDDIQI 

Strategic Trade Policy Framework for 

2015-18: Export target looks challenging 

The long delayed Strategic Trade Policy Framework for 2015-18 

was finally announced by Federal Commerce Minister Engineer 

Khurram Dastgir Khan in middle of March this yearr. Government 

claims that keeping in view current trends in global trading 

environment and the trend in Pakistan's exports, the mid-term 

strategic trade policy framework was formulated through an extensive 

consultative process with all stakeholders spanning over almost a 

year. Enhancement of annual exports to US$ 35 billion, Improve 

export competitiveness, transition from ‘factor-driven’ economy to 

‘efficiency-driven’ &‘innovation-driven’ economy and increase share 

in regional trade were envisaged by June 30, 2018. We hope sincere 

efforts by all stakeholders; can pave the way to achieve this target, 

provided government resolve major export refund issue, energy 

crisis and other factors impacting business cost. 

The ingredients of policy looks appropriate as all exportable items 

were covered, except ambitious export target of US$ 35 billion, 

which looks challenging, as export more or less stagnate for last 

few years on economic meltdown all over the world. Pakistan’s 

exports crossed the US$ 25 billion for the first time in 2013-14. 

However, year 2014-15 had experienced decline in exports of about 

4.78% due to exogenous shocks coupled with domestic factors. 

Budgetary allocation of Rs. 6 Billion has been approved to 

implement the trade policy initiatives for year 2015-16. Let’s see 

whether government would release it in letter and spirit or may 

reportedly carry over in next budget to cover budget deficit of current 

financial year. 

A cursory looks of trade policy reveals that it consists of four pillars, 

in marked contrast to previous policies that either focused on import 

substitution or export promotion: product diversification and 

sophistication which one would hope envisages producing 

exportable products rather than exporting what we produce, market 

access, institution development and trade facilitation. 

The government announces some incentives for leather, 

pharmaceutical, fisheries and surgical instruments, keeping in view 

their export potentials. Matching grant upto a maximum of Rs. 5 

million for specified plant and machinery or specified items to 

improve product design and encourage innovation in SMEs – a good 

offer from government. Another wise step of government is to 

provide matching grant to facilitate the branding and certification for 

faster growth of the SME and export sector in Pakistan’s economy 

through Intellectual Property Registration (including trade and service 

marks), Certification and Accreditation. 



After successful establishment 

of Services Export Development 

Council and Leather Export 

Development Council, Ministry 

of Commerce intends to venture 

into non-traditional export 

sectors where value-addition 

and product diversification can 

be achieved. Accordingly, 

Pharmaceutical & Cosmetics 

Export Promotion Council and 

Rice Development & Export 

Promotion Council will be 

establishedd. 

The policy also carries some 

incentive for agriculture sector. 

It includes, 50% support on the 

cost of imported new plant and 

machinery for specified underdeveloped 

regions and 100% 

mark-up support on the cost of 

imported new plant and 

machinery on all Pakistan basis. 

The incentives provided to 

agriculture sector were 

commendable and their 

mechanism should be 

publicized. 

Experts and commentators 

believe that we should follow on 

the foot step of our regional 

competitors who extend massive 

subsidies on fertilizer and other 

inputs, including high quality 

seed as well as on the 

maintenance and expansion of 

the irrigation system. 

In order to diversify our export 

markets, an outreach strategy for 

Africa, Commonwealth of 

Independent States (CIS) and 

Latin America is being adopted. 

As part of the market penetration/ 

outreach strategy, these new 

markets will be explored through 

Market Research, Opening of 

new Trade Missions, Exhibitions 

and Delegations, Linkages 

through Export Import Bank 

[EXIM Bank]. 

Business community has 

expressed mixed reaction over 

Trade policy, while major export 

earning industries such as textile 

and leather have lodged their 

reservations. 

All Pakistan Textile Mills 

Association has brought in the 

notice of the government that 

textile industry is being 

devastated due to High Cost of 

Doing Business. For the 

restoration of viability and growth, 

the textile industry solicits, 

complete withdrawal of gas 

infrastructure development cess 

(GIDC) levied on the textile 

industry, immediate payment of 

all pending refund claims by 

FBR, zero rating of sales tax 

facility to entire textile chain, 

immediate imposition of 15% 

regulatory duty on dumped 

import of yarn and fabrics under 

chapter 55, provision of 5% 

DLTL on the entire textile chain, 

due to crop failure import duty 

on cotton should be abolished 

immediately. Similarly, Gulzar 

Firoz, Chairman Pakistan 

Tanners association (PTA) said 

the trade policy lacked of 

incentives for exports and 

particularly there is hardly any 

incentive for the leather sector. 

He said that even some important 

and necessary incentives which 

were in previous trade policy are 

missed out. 

We hope government would 

arrange meetings with 

stakeholders in post policy 

scenario to accommodate their 

issue in next fiscal budget. 

EDITORIAL 

COMMENTS 

New Auto policy: 

hopefully attracts fresh 

investors 

The long awaited Automotive 

Development Policy (ADP) for 

the upcoming five years, was 

announced by Minister for 

Defence Khawaja Asif in middle 

of March this year. The primary 

focus is tilted towards the 

facilitation of higher volumes, 

encouragement of newer 

investments and enhancement 

of competition together with 

insurance of consumers’ 

welfare. 

Experts believe that this would 

potentially encourage foreign 

players to enter the Pakistani 

market, however, since the 

setting of new plants will take 

some time, existing players are 

expected to continue benefiting 

from the rise in demand. The 

policy intact the age limit for 

imported vehicles at 3yrs. The 

policy hopefully, will bring 

investment in auto sector which 

is flooded with Japanese makers; 

the revival of existing nonoperational 

or closed assembly 

and manufacturing facilities since 

before June 30, 2013 and by auto 

parts maker. 

The policy also offers step-wise 

reduction of 10% in duties on 

CBUs of 1800cc and below, each 

year in FY18 and FY19. This 

would provide sufficient cushion 

for the existing players till FY18 

and would significantly support the 

sales of the new model launches 

expected in FY17. 



Expert’s comments that the policy 

itself sounds impressive and offers 

some tax incentives for new 

entrants into the market, but it 

does not go far enough to tackle 

the existing monopolies. Allowing 

the continued import of used cars 

is not a policy, it is a necessity 

since existing car assemblies in 

the country are barely able to 

meet the demand. With European 

companies, including 

Volkswagon, and some Chinese 

investors expressing interest in 

beginning manufacturing in 

Pakistan, it would have been 

prudent for the government to be 

able to present a comprehensive 

package of preferential incentives 

for new companies to enter the 

market. 

The local industry has termed the 

policy balanced and hope it help 

kick start growth and provide 

more choices to consumers. 

However, Vendors have rejected 

it while Association of Pakistan 

Motorcycle Assemblers pointed 

out that the new auto policy had 

nothing for Chinese bike 

assemblers. The Federation of 

Pakistan Chambers of 

Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) 

remarked it as encouraging but far 

from perfection. We suggest 

government should ask the 

existing three major auto 

manufacturers who reportedly are 

mere assemblers to increse 

levels of deletion and localisation. 

The new auto policy is good, but 

it can only achieve its objectives 

of high level of localisation, lower 

prices with high quality products 

if the deletion policy is given at the 

time of granting approval to other 

major international auto 

manufacturers who show an 

interest in entering the Pakistani 

market. The given deletion 

schedule should be strictly 

implemented. This will help 

expand local vendor industries, 

encourage healthy competition 

and generate more employment 

and investment in locallyassembled 

spare parts. 

Water crisis in 

Gwadar port 

Pakistan’s Gwadar port is 

facing acute drinking water 

shortages after a three-year 

drought in the arid province of 

Balochistan and as a result, the 

Akara Kaur dam, the only 

source of water for Gwadar and 

surrounding areas, has almost 

dried up, media reports point 

out. Such kind of news attracts 

concern of Pakistani when the 

port city will become an 

international business hub at 

the end of the China Pakistan 

Economic Corridor (CPEC) – 

an ambitious US $46 billion 

project linking the deep water 

port on the Arabian Sea with 

the city of Kashgar in western 

China. 

CPEC in no doubt game 

changer for Pakistan’s 

economy and any irritants in its 

way should be removed before 

it impact viability of project. 

Government considers water 

supply to Gwadar Port is a key 

challenge. Hence a Rs11.2bn 

project to develop water 

treatment, supply and 

distribution was taken in hand 

to connect Swad and Shadikaur 

dams with Gwadar. However, 

media reports suggest that as 

of March 15, the Gwadar Port 

Authority (GPA) is still not clear 

on the financial modality of the 

Swad-Gwadar City Water 

Supply, nor about its second 

phase — connecting Shadikaur 

dam. The GPA is not aware if 

the project is to be developed 

through grant, an interest-free 

loan or a commercial loan from 

China. This confusion must be 

addressed. 

Furthermore, the warning from 

the governor of Balochistan 

regarding the risks that the 

depleting water resources of 

his province pose to the China- 

Pakistan Economic Corridor 

needs to be taken seriously. 

Today, the problem of 

groundwater pumping and 

falling water tables has become 

so acute that the subsidies 

provided on electricity for tube 

wells is reportedly larger than 

the cost of building the dam and 

its water conveyance system 

for Quetta. 

The president FPCCI rightly 

called for revisiting Indus Water 

Treaty as it was signed when 

issues like climate change and 

environmental degradation 

were not on the table therefore 

it should be revisited to soothe 

reservations of Pakistan. The 

recent influx of investment has 

put more pressure on water 

resources. 

It is heartening to note that the 

Federal Minister for Planning, 

Development and Reform 

Ahsan Iqbal, who is leading the 

CPEC project, said that 

ministry understood the gravity 

of crisis and was taking urgent 

steps to resolve the issue. “The 

federal government has 

designed a desalination plant 

project in Gwadar to purify the 

sea water,” he noted. 



Message from 

Mamnoon Hussain 

President of Pakistan 

(On the occasion of 

“Pakistan Day 23rd 

March, 2016”) 

The 23rd March is the Day to renew 

our commitment to develop the 

country in accordance with the 

principles of justice and equity, the real 

objective of the creation of Pakistan. 

On this auspicious occasion, we pay 

tribute to the Father of the Nation and 

other leaders of the Freedom 

Movement who facilitated the 

creation of Pakistan by uniting the 

nation through their earnestness, 

wisdom and unparalleled sacrifices. 

Let me remind you on this important 

occasion that Pakistan came into 

Message from 

The Prime Minister 

of Pakistan 

Pakistani Nation is celebrating the 

76th Anniversary of Pakistan 

Resolution; adopted on 23rd March 

1940 under the inspiring leadership of 

Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali 

Jinnah. It changed the course of our 

history. The dream was achieved in 

the form of Pakistan as an 

independent country despite great 

opposition and challenges. The 

struggle was for a state where the 

principles of social justice and equality 

could prevail to ensure peace, 

tolerance and prosperity in 

accordance with the religious beliefs 

and cultural values of its citizens. 

Today, we stand determined to 

preserve and protect this country for 

our future generations. 

Pakistan Day 

being through a long democratic 

struggle and now the key to its 

stability and development also lies in 

democracy. Therefore, it is essential 

to promote the spirit of tolerance and 

patience which are the fundamentals 

of democracy so that the existing 

challenges of extremism and 

terrorism can be overcome by the 

nation. 

The resolution galvanized the nation 

and millions of people sacrificed their 

lives for the sake of independence. 

Pakistan was a reality within a short 

span of time. Today we are 

confronted with unprecedented 

threats and challenges in the form of 

extremism and terrorism, but we are 

resolved to defeat these evils. The 

menace of terrorism and extremism 

It is an unfortunate reality that 

terrorism has affected all segments 

of the Pakistani society. The terrorists 

have not spared educational 

institutions, public places and even 

places of worship, which demonstrate 

their negative and destructive 

mindset. I am happy that the Pakistani 

nation is united against this menace 

and fully determined to eradicate all 

forms of terrorism. We can win this 

battle by putting an end to our 

differences, promoting brotherhood 

and tolerance. Therefore, it is 

imperative to promote education in the 

country and transfer the fruits of 

development to every Pakistani in 

order to achieve this objective. I pray 

to Almighty Allah to bless us with the 

spirit to sincerely serve our country 

so that we can take Pakistan to the 

heights of glory by following in the 

footprints of our great forefathers. 

Ameen! 

will be completely wiped-out from our 

soil. 

On this occasion we reiterate our 

resolve to ensure freedom, equality 

and social justice for every citizen of 

Pakistan as enshrined in the teachings 

of Islam. Our government has taken 

landmark initiatives to safeguard the 

minorities living in Pakistan and 

empower Pakistani women. Our 

endeavours are aimed at 

mainstreaming the marginalized 

segments of our society as we 

believe that each and every Pakistani 

is an equal citizen of the land. 

Let us pledge to offer equal 

opportunities for every Pakistani 

citizen to achieve a pluralistic society 

where each and every man and 

woman work collectively for the 

Contd. on page # 10 



ON March 23, 1940, the Muslims of 

the sub-continent resolved to create 

a separate homeland, Pakistan. The 

decision was neither taken in haste 

nor precipitated by a sudden, dramatic 

turn of events. 

Turning dreams into reality 

Hindus and Muslims had lived in India 

for centuries but had remained two 

distinctly different cultural entities 

presenting marked dissimilarities that 

neither time nor assimilation could 

erase; they were like two streams 

running a parallel course. So manifest 

and so profound were the differences 

that the London Times, commenting 

on the Government of India Act of 

1935, had to ungrudgingly concede: 

“Undoubtedly the difference 

between the Hindus and Muslims is 

not of religion in the strict sense of 

the word but also of laws and culture, 

that they may be said indeed to 

represent two entirely distinct and 

separate civilizations.” 

This incontrovertible realization found 

a more convincing elucidation in the 

words of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad 

Ali Jinnah: 

“Notwithstanding thousand years of 

close contact, nationalities which are 

as divergent today as ever, cannot at 

any time be expected to transform 

themselves into one nation merely by 

mean of subjecting them to a 

democratic constitution and holding 

them forcibly together by unnatural 

and artificial methods of British 

Parliamentary Statutes.” 

The background of Pakistan 

Resolution is such that in 1937, 

provincial autonomy was introduced 

in the sub-continent under the 

Government of India Act, 1935. The 

elections of 1937 provided the 

Congress with a majority in six 

provinces, where Congress 

governments were formed. This led 

Contd. from page # 09 

progress and prosperity of our 

country. Pakistan was envisioned to 

be a state where people could freely 

practice their faith without any fear 

or threat. I am optimistic that our 

collective efforts based on plurality, 

equality and justice would make 

Pakistan a state as dreamted by 

Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali 

Jinnah. 

May Allah Almighty guide us in our 

efforts to prove ourselves worthy 

inheritors of the homeland 

bequeathed to us by Quaid-e-Azam 

and other great leaders of Pakistan 

Movement. (Ameen) 

President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif 

taking salute on the occasion of Pakistan Day Parade in Islamabad on March 

23, 2016. Defence Minister, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and 

Services Chiefs are also present. 



to the political, social, economic and 

cultural suppression of the Muslims 

in the Congress ruled provinces. 

The Congress contemptuously 

rejected the Muslim League’s offer 

of forming coalition ministries. The 

Muslims were subjected not only to 

physical attacks but injustice and 

discriminatory treatment as regards 

civil liberties, economic measures 

and employment and educational 

opportunities. The Congress 

Ministries introduced the Wardha 

scheme of education, the object of 

which was to “de- Muslimize” the 

Muslim youth and children. 

Ian Stephens, former editor of the 

newspaper “Statesman” and an 

eyewitness to the working of the 

Congress Ministries, says: 

“The effect of this simultaneously 

on many Muslim minds was of a 

lightning flash.” 

“What had before been but guessed 

at now leap forth in horridly clear 

outline. The Congress, a Hindidominated 

body, was bent on the 

eventual absorption; Western-style 

majority rule?, in an undivided subcontinent, 

could only mean the 

smaller community being 

swallowed by the larger.” 

The animosity shown by the Hindus 

to the Muslim and their own 

experience of two-and-a-half year 

Congress rule strengthened the 

Muslims belief in their separate 

nationality. The discriminatory 

attitude coupled with attempts by 

the Hindu dominated Congress to 

suppress the Muslims impelled the 

Muslims to finally demand a 

separate sovereign state for the 

Muslims. 

However, the Muslim demand was 

violently opposed both by the 

British and the Hindus; and the 

Congress attitude toward the 

Muslims led to the hardening of the 

Muslims belief that only a separate 

homeland — Pakistan — can 

guarantee their freedom. This 

demand was put in black and white 

on March 23, 1940. 

However the path to independence 

and separate nationhood was 

strewn with a multiplying myriad of 

problems. First and foremost was 

the claim to nationhood vehemently 

contested by the Congress 

stalwarts and their supporters. How 

could a community of converts 

claim itself to be a nation? Gandhiji 

posed the question as he ridiculed 

the Muslim League’s claim to 

independent nationhood. The Quaid 

was quick to furnish the answer: 

“Mussalmans are a nation 

according to any definition of a 

nation, and they must have their 

homeland, their territory and their 

state…” 

“The Hindus and Muslims belong 

to two different religious 

philosophies, social customs, 

literature. They neither intermarry, 

nor interdine together and, indeed 

they belong to two different 

civilizations, which are based 

mainly on conflicting ideas and 

conceptions. Their aspects on life 

and of life are different. 

It is quite clear that Hindus and 

Mussalmans derive their inspiration 

from different sources of history. 

They have different epics, different 

heroes and different episodes. Very 

often the hero of one is a foe of the 

other and, likewise their victories 

and defeats overlap. To yoke 

together two such nations under a 

single state, one as a numerical 

minority and the other as a majority, 

must lead to growing discontent and 

final destruction of any fabric that 

may be so built up for the 

government of such a state…” 

After adoption of the Pakistan 

Resolution, Quaid-e-Azam had a 

clear objective before him and he 

struggled hard to achieve it. In one 

of the meetings, he said: 

“We are a Nation of a hundred 

million and what is more, we are a 

Nation with our distinct culture and 

civilization, language and literature, 

art and architecture, legal laws and 

moral codes, customs and calendar, 

history and traditions, aptitudes and 

ambitions. In short, as Muslims we 

have our own distinctive outlook on 

life.” 

He further said that by all cannons 

of international laws, we are a 

nation. In 1945, Quaid-e-Azam 

proclaimed that only Muslim 

League represented the Muslims, 

and proved it to the hilt during 1946 

polls, winning 100 percent seats at 

the Centre, and 80 per cent in the 

provinces. Nothing could have been 

more conclusive to shatter the 

Congress claim of being a national 

body. If the British had read the 

writing on the wall in this verdict, 

Pakistan could have come into 

existence two years earlier without 

bloodshed. With his charismatic 

personality Quaid-e-Azam turned 

the dream of a separate homeland 

into reality on 14th of August 1947. 

Thanks to the Quaid’s unwavering 

leadership and untiring efforts, 

Pakistan was transformed from an 

ideal into a reality in a short span 

of time. In 1947, seven years after 

the passage of the historic Pakistan 

Day Resolution at Lahore, the 

world witnessed the emergence of 

the largest Muslim state. 



The 12th International 

Safe Secure Exhibition - 

2016 concludes 

successfully 

The 12th International Safe Secure 

Exhibition - 2016 concluded 

successfully at Pak-China Friendship 

Centre in Islamabad recently. It was 

organized by Pegasus Consultancy. 

While addressing a large gathering at 

the event Maj Gen. Asghar Nawaz, 

Chairman NDMA, (National 

Disaster Management Authority) said 

“The risk of disaster happening can 

be reduced with better preparation, 

being a chief disaster managers we 

cannot prevent the disasters but the 

risk of happening can be reduced 

with better preparation in response 

to its effects, Country is in Security 

Crises and this exhibition is a timely 

effort”. 

Chairman NDMA, compliments the 

role of organiser, Pegasus 

Consultancy by bringing together 

more than 200 companies from 30 

different countries. 

As the inauguration day was also a 

“World Civil Defence Day”, Air Vice 

Marshal (Retd) Ijaz Mahmood Malik, 

director general, Civil Defence, 

expressed that, “ Safety and security 

has become a global challenge and is 

a major concern for every individual 

and organization”. “Safe Secure 

Pakistan provides an excellent 

opportunity for international safety 

and security equipment 

manufacturers to reap the benefit 

from this potential market”, he 

expressed. 

Visits to 

www.tradechronicle.com 



FFBL – An ICON of Excellence 

Historical Perspective 

Fauji Fertilizer Bin Qasim Limited Plant 

is a modern Granular Urea and Di- 

Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 

fertilizers manufacturing complex, built 

at a cost of US$ 468 million and located 

in Eastern Zone of Bin Qasim, Karachi, 

with Head Office at Defence Housing 

Authority Phase-II, Islamabad. 

Initially named as FFC-Jordan 

Fertilizer Company (FJFC), w.e.f. 17 th 

Nov 1993, with FFC (30%), FF (10%) 

and JPMC (10%) as main sponsors. 

The company was formally listed with 

stock exchanges in May 1996 and 

commercial production commenced 

w.e.f. Jan 2000. However, it 

continued to run in crises due to 

technical, financial and managerial 

reasons till 2001. DAP Plant was 

brought to suspension in 2001 due to 

accumulated loss of Rs. 6.5 Billion. 

It resumed production in Sep 2003, 

after a lapse of 2 years. 

Renamed as Fauji Fertilizer Bin 

Qasim Ltd. (FFBL) in 2003, as such 

Jordan Phosphate Mines Co. (JPMC) 

had sold its entire equity in the 

company. Accordingly, Phosphoric 

acid supply agreement with Jordan 

was terminated. The company turned 

out to be profitable after 3 years i.e. 

by 2004 and declared ‘maiden 

dividend’ in 2004. Profitability has 

constantly been on the rise since then 

and 2011 has been the most profitable 

year of the company. One of the 

milestones in the success of FFBL is 

its accreditation of ISO certification, 

which was achieved in Mar 2006 for 

both the Head Office and Plantsite. 

The current ownership is structured 

as under: 

· FaujiFertilizer Company : 49.88% 

· Fauji Foundation : 18.29% 

· Financial institutions and the general 

public : 31.83% 

• Total Shares : 934,110,000 

• Authorized Capital : 

Rs. 11,000,000,000 

• Paid up Capital : 

Rs. 9,341,100,000 

FFBL also holds membership of 

industry association and trade bodies; 

· Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce 

· International Fertilizer Association 

Our Distinctions 

· FFBL is the only fertilizer complex 

in Pakistan producing DAP and 

Granular Urea thus making significant 

contribution towards agricultural 

growth of the country. 

· FFBL DAP has 41% market share 

with present capacity. 

· FFBL Urea has presently 5.2% 

market share with current production 

owing to gas curtailment. With 100% 

production capacity the market share 

comes to 17% 

· FFBL is selling its product with the 

brand name of “SONA”. Fauji Group 

has the largest fertilizer marketing 

setup in Pakistan (managed by FFC) 

comprising of 14 sales regions, 66 sales 

districts, a strong dealership network 

and extensive warehousing setup. 

FFBL has successfully accomplished 

13 million safe man hours. 

FFBL’s Corporate Vision 

· To be a premier organization focused 

on Quality and growth, leading to 

enhanced stakeholders’ value. 

FFBL’s Core Values 

• Professional Integrity 

• Winning working environment 

• Accountability 

• Creativity and Innovation 

• Corporate Social Responsibility 

• Focus on result 

Performance & Production 

FFBL fertilizer complex is state of the 

art manufacturing facility with 

advanced Distributed Control System 

for safe and efficient operation. The 

phosphoric acid being raw material for 

DAP plant is imported from Morocco 

and initially stored in tanks at Port 

Qasim. Design capacity viz-a-viz actual 

production of Plants is as under:- 

Utilities & Storage 



Well-qualified Human Capital 

· Plant workforce comprises of 

around 1,500 people with 200 

engineers, 700 technicians with 

varying degrees of experience, in 

addition to experts in the field of 

finance, supply chain, human capital 

management, information 

technology etc. 

· Plant has its own training 

department which provides technical 

training on-site along with outsourcing 

to specialists inside and outside the 

country. 

· Employees are extremely dedicated 

and highly motivated and have been 

able to complete projects at a time 

when it was very difficult to bring in 

experts from abroad. 

Financial Performance 

Assets & Liabilities 

Accreditation of International 

Standards 

FFBL has acquired following 

certifications in 2006:- 

· ISO 9001 : Quality Control 

· ISO 14001 : Environmental 

Management 

· OHSAS 18001 : Occupational 

Health and Safety 

FFBL Tower. 

FFBL has constructed 11 story 

Corporate Tower at DHA Phase II. 

Tower is now operational and all the 

departments have been relocated to 

one central Head Office. We reached 

this monumental step in November 

2015 and now living the dream. 

The quality of the architecture is 

emphasised by a number of features. 

Tower reflects the company’s 

philosophy that its employees are its 

major capital, and its aversion to the 

usual hierarchal structures. It 

contains state of the art features in 

Security, IT and Safety measures. 

This beautifully constructed building 

in many ways is a piece of art. The 

convex façade with the small carefully 

calibrated square holes allows for sun 

to penetrate the building and surround 

it with natural light. The double glazed 

large windows give us a spectacular 

panoramic view of the surroundings. 

Following are the salient features:- 

- Centrally air-conditioned building 

through dual fired absorption chillers. 

- Backup standby generators. 

- Intelligent fire detection and 

protection system. 

- CCTV security surveillance. 

- Public address and VOIP system. 

- Conducive work environment. 

- Building covered with plants and 

greenery which gives relaxed and 

homely feel. 

- Building management system for 

central monitoring and control of 

services. 

- 3 high speed elevators + 1 special 

purpose lift. 

- Common facilities:- 

√ Multipurpose Hall. 

√ Medical Center. 

√ Training Institute. 

√ Executive and Staff Dining Areas. 

√ Conference and Meeting Rooms. 

√ Gymnasium. 

√ Terraces on each floor for soak in 

the view, catch a fresh breath of air 

or even have a quiet smoke. 

Awards 

In recognition of FFBL performance, 

following prestigious honoures were 

awarded to the Company:- 

• Silver Medal of SAP Support 

Operation for the Year 2015 

andBronze Medal of the “SAP 

Customer Center of Expertise – 



2014by ‘SAP Software Corporation’ 

in category of Support Operations. 

• 12th Annual Environment 

Excellence Award 2015 by National 

Forum for Environment and Health 

(NFEH) 

• Best Corporate Report Award – 

2011, 2012,2013& 2014 by ‘ICAP’ 

and ‘ICMAP’. 

• KSE Top 25 Companies 

Award2010, 2011, 2012&2013 by 

‘Karachi Stock Exchange 

(Guarantee) Limited’. 


Awards 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 

by ‘National Forum for Environment 

& Health’. 


Award 2015 by ‘The Professional 

Network & EBU Ethical’. 

• Best CEO Awardfor the Year 2011- 

12 by ‘Mass Human Resource 

Services’ in chemical sector. 

• RCCI Platinum Award for the year 

2012 by ‘Rawalpindi Chamber of 

Commerce’. 

• Certificate of Excellence by Fire 

Protection Association of Pakistan 

(FPAP) and National Forum for 

Environment & Health (NFEH). 

JOINT VENTURE 

Pakistan MarocPhosphore S.A, 

(PMP) Morocco – A Joint 

Venture 

Phosphoric Acid, being the main raw 

material for DAP production is 

imported from Morocco. To ensure 

the continuous supply of this strategic 

raw material to run DAP plant at 

Karachi, Office Cherifien des 

Phosphates (OCP), Morocco, the 

biggest industrial group of Kingdom 

of Morocco and the Fauji Group 

(Fauji Foundation, FFC and FFBL) 

entered into a joint venture for its 

uninterrupted supply. The company, 

named as Pakistan Maroc Phosphore 

S.A(PMP) costing 2.3 billion 

Moroccan Dirhams (US$ 250 million) 

was formed at Morocco. The project 

has successfully been completed in 

record time and within the budget. 

Commercial production and shipment 

to FFBL started in April 2008 and May 

2008 respectively. Plant is designed to 

produce 375,000 MT per year of 

Phosphoric acid thus meeting the total 

requirement of DAP plant of FFBL. 

Surplus acid is sold in the international 

market. 

The Project is one of its kind with 

strategic significance of involving two 

of the largest business groups of two 

brotherly Muslim nations i.e, Fauji 

Group of Pakistan and OCP Group 

of Morocco. Its formal inauguration 

was performed by His Majesty the 

King of Morocco in October, 2008. 

Dignataries from Pakistan also 

attended the creemony. 

Significant benefits associated 

with this project are: 

· Production of 375,000 metric tons 

of phosphoric acid per annum is not 

only ensuring un-interrupted supply of 

raw material, catering for the entire 

post-BMR demand of DAP 

requirement of FFBL, but also a 

source of profit in the form of selling 

out the surplus production. This, in 

turn has enhanced FFBL earnings in 

the form of dividends. 

· This is the first-ever foreign 

investment by the Fauji Group. Apart 

from its contribution towards 

economic growth of Pakistan, it has 

added to the prestige of the country. 

· Long term raw material supply is 

guaranteed in an extremely turbulent 

international market. 

· PMP plant is spread on 118,000 

square meters land inside OCP 

complex near the Port of JorfLasfar, 

about 25 KMs from the city of El- 

Jadida. 

DIVERSIFICATION 

FFBL has recently diversified into 

various businesses after careful 

analysis of relevant markets. 

Following new projects has been 

ventured: 

FFBL Power Company Limited. 

To maintain the business 

sustainability, Coal Power Plant 

(CPP) Project having capacity of 

power generation of 118 MW is being 

set-up in SPV mode at a total cost of 

US$ 265 Million (+10%) with the 

objectives of supplying power & 

steam to FFBL and use the saved 

natural gas for enhanced Fertilizer 

production, greater Operational 

flexibility for FFBL and power export 

up-to 60 MW to K-Electric (under 

negotiation). The project is in detailed 

engineering phase. Expected 

Commercial Operation Date (COD) 

is December 2016. 

Fauji Meat Limited (FML). With 

a vision to be the leading local & 

international Halal meat processing 

company, FML was incorporated in 

2013 as a public limited company. 

FML has setup a state-of-the-art 

Halal abattoir and meat processing 

facility near Bin Qasim Port, Karachi 

(Pakistan) with an estimated project 

cost of 60 million USD. The facility 

is spread over 47 acres of land 

including the plant and 3 day animal 

holding area. Daily production 

capacity of the plant is 100 tons/day 

of Meat (85 tons of Beef & 15 tons 

of Mutton) in both Frozen & Chilled 

categories for worldwide export. The 

plant is designed to meet the 

objectives of processing high quality 

meat (Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep & Goat), 

Value added products and Byproducts. 

• Pakistan’s only state-of-the-art 

Halal abattoir, which offers meat 

products in VACUUM packaging. 



FML will be the only meat processing 

company in the country which offers 

Rendered products including Bone/ 

meat meal, Blood meal & Tallow 

conforming to International quality 

standards. 

• Understanding the importance of 

quality in this business and following 

traditions of ‘Fauji Group’, FML 

acquired the services of International 

consultants for plant design & 

construction. Equipment has been 

procured from the top world class 

manufacturers; conforming to the 

highest standards of International 

quality. Project is in testing phase and 

near to announce Commercial 

Operation Date. 

• Noon Pakistan Limited (NPL). 

FFBL together with FaujiFoundation 

have obtained controlling interest with 

51% voting and 51% non-voting 

shares of 

Noon Pakistan 

Limited on 04 

September, 

2015.In order 

to compete in 

current dairy 

industry, the 

Management 

decided to 

enter into 

Dairy business 

through a 

running Dairy 

entity; NPL 

with “Nurpur” 

a very strong 

brand. The 

acquisition will be beneficial for the 

Company as well as for all stake 

holders. The Company is now going 

for major expansion in its operations, 

which will reflect a better financial 

result in coming years. 

• Fauji Foods Limited (FFL). The 

Company was established to venture 

into viable opportunities in Food & 

Dairy sectors. Dairy processing was 

selected as having immense potential 

in the country. 

Investments 

• Foundation Wind Energy I & II. 

The Company has investedRs. 2.348 

billion in two wind power plants; 

Foundation Wind Energy- I Limited 

(formerly Beacon Energy Limited) 

and Foundation Wind Energy- II 

(Private) Limited (formerly Green 

Power Private Limited) of 49.5 MW 

each. Total estimated cost of each 

project is US Dollar 130 million. The 

projects have a “Debt to Equity” ratio 

of 75:25. Projects are located at 

KhuttiKun New Island in Taluka 

Mirpur Sakro of Thatta District. 

Land area of FWE-I & II is 1210 and 

1656 acres respectively.The 

Company holds 35% shareholding in 

each project. Both the Projects have 

achieved Commercial Operation Date 

(COD) and are operating 

satisfactorily. 

Askari Bank Limited (AKBL). As 

part of investment diversification, 

FFBL invested in Askari Bank Limited 

in 2013 and acquired 271,884 

thousands shares representing 

21.57% holding. The new 

management of AKBL initiated a 

major realignment strategy and 

business process re-engineering and 

is in the process of implementing state 

of the art IT core banking system to 

improve its operational efficiency. 

The investment offers a unique 

opportunity for Fauji Group to create 

an annuity business of immense profit 

which will enhance the returns to 

shareholders in the long run. 

CORPORATE SOCIAL 

RESPONSIBILITY 

Sustainable and responsible 

development has remained our 

primary concern since inception. 

FFBL has distinguished itself as a 

good neighbour. Not only have we 

consistently delivered outstanding 

returns to our shareholders, we strive 

hard to be a good employer, to be a 

catalyst for the social and economic 

development of the communities in 

which we 

operate, and to 

minimize our 

environmental 

impact. 

In Nov 2010, 

after approval 

by the Board, a 

long-term CSR 

Program was 

launched in 

collaboration 

with a 

renowned 

NGO, Human 

Development 

Foundation 

(HDF). As per MOU, the NGO has 

to implement all program activities in 

GhaggarPhattak Bin Qasim Town, 

Karachi and FFBL is to provide funds 

up to Rs 49.1 million over a period of 

5 years. HDF is engaged in 

community development activities 

with special emphasis on health and 

education promotion. 



SBP says strong LSM output to bolster growth 

Economy picking up; inflation behaving despite challenges 

By Shahnawaz Akhter 

Pakistan’s economy will pick up 

further during the second half of the 

current fiscal year thanks to the stable 

growth in large scale manufacturing 

sector on the start of multibillion 

rupees resource projects and a good 

winter rains this season that will 

bolster agriculture production, the 

central bank says recently. 

“ D e s p i t e 

challenging global 

economic 

conditions, 

Pakistan’s overall 

macroeconomic 

outlook appears 

stable,” the State 

Bank of Pakistan 

said in its ‘Second 

Quarterly Review 

on the State of 

Pakistan’s 

Economy’. 

“Growth is likely to 

pick up… fiscal position is strong; 

inflation is likely to stay low and risks 

on the external front have been 

moderate to a large extent.” 

The bank, however, kept its growth 

forecast unchanged at 4-5 percent for 

the current fiscal year of 2015/16. The 

SBP’s growth forecast is still below 

than the government target of 5.5 

percent. The economy grew at a rate 

of 4.2 percent in the last fiscal year 

ended June 2015. 

The central bank said a stable 

macroeconomic environment means 

that the economic growth would 

maintain the momentum. 

“We expect GDP growth during the 

FY16 to be higher than the last 

fiscal… We are optimistic on the 

industrial sector’s performance but 

cannot firmly assess the final 

outcomes in agriculture and services,” 

the SBP said. 

It said the growth momentum in large 

scale manufacturing (LSM) 

continued to remain strong in the first 

half of the current fiscal year, 

supported by better energy supplies, 

lower commodity prices and 

accommodative polices. 

The LSM sector grew 3.9 percent in 

the first half of the current fiscal 

against 2.7 percent in the previous 

year of the same period. Major 

contribution to LSM growth came 

from auto, fertiliser and construction 

allied industries. 

On the agriculture sector 

performance, the central bank said 

the prospects of surpassing targets in 

wheat and value addition in livestock 

are strong. “While initial estimates 

suggest a decline in area under wheat 

cultivation, a marked improvement in 

yields has increased hopes for a 

Trade Chronicle - March - April 2016 - Page # 17 

bumper for a third year in a row; 

timely rains and better input 

availability have reported improved 

the per-acre harvest,” the bank said. 

The SBP, however, also said overall 

growth does not portray a very 

encouraging picture in agriculture 

sector. “Preliminary estimates 

suggest that all 

Kharif crops 

have missed 

their respective 

targets; cotton 

and rice did not 

achieve last 

y e a r ’ s 

production 

level.” 

The central 

bank highlighted 

the public debt 

servicing 

obligations, 

which were not more than six billion 

dollars per annum until 2020. “Debt 

servicing of $5 billion due on 2016 are 

well within manageable level 

considering the present level of 

foreign exchange level,” the central 

bank said. 

The SBP estimated the current fiscal 

year’s inflation at 3-4 percent below 

the target of six percent. “The global 

commodity prices are not expected 

to recover anytime soon, and on the 

other, a stable Pak Rupee is likely to 

keep inflation expectations further at 

bay,” it added. 

The central bank maintained the 

lower inflation estimates on the 

government move to reduce domestic 

Contd. on page # 18


The ‘E’ in CPEC 

By Aadil Nakhoda 

THE China-Pakistan Economic 

Corridor (CPEC), once completed, 

will become a major milestone in 

Pakistan’s economic history. The 

road networks that will extend from 

Gwadar to the Chinese border along 

with several power projects, and 

infrastructure development including 

export-processing and industrial 

zones, will benefit the economy. 

The Chinese government’s intention 

is clear. It wants to connect the 

western region of China to one of the 

closest seaports, Gwadar, with an 

efficient transportation network that 

provides easier access to a major 

supplier of oil and other natural 

Contd. from page # 17 

petrol prices by 6.6 percent and 11.9 

percent in February and March 2016, 

respectively, following the freefall of 

oil prices to a 12-year low level in the 

international market. 

The bank said measures taken by the 

government in October 2015 would 

help the Federal Board of Revenue 

to maintain revenue collection 

growth. Expenditures will remain 

within target, it added. 

The pattern of lower borrowing from 

financial institutions would remain 

same in the second half of the current 

fiscal year as the government is 

expecting more external funding 

down the road, the SBP said. “The 

lower borrowing helped the increase 

in private sector credit off-take, 

which bodes well for the industrial 

sector performance,” it said. The SBP 

reviewed the first half of current fiscal 

year in which Pakistan had faced 

both positive and negative effects due 

to prevailing global conditions. 

resources necessary to develop its 

western regions. This strategy is in 

accordance with the Western 

Development Programmes 

introduced in the late 1990s to focus 

on the industrial development of the 

western regions. Gwadar’s proximity 

to the oil-rich and resource-intensive 

Middle East will let Chinese importers 

circumvent the alternative sea routes 

that involve passage through several 

countries in the Indian Ocean and the 

extensive land transport from its 

seaports in eastern China. It is likely 

that several tons of natural resources 

and industrial supplies will flow 

through Pakistan. 

A viable industrial development 

strategy is a prerequisite for economic 

growth. It is imperative that strategies 

It said that the decline in oil prices 

allowed a 39.8 percent fall in the 

country’s oil import bill, helping reduce 

the trade deficit by 1.6 percent in the 

first half. Furthermore, the passthrough 

of low prices by the 

government has contributed in 

pushing down the consumer price 

index inflation to a multi-decade low. 

Together, the low inflation 

expectations and stability on the 

external front allowed SBP to cut the 

policy rate to its historically low level 

of six percent in September 2015; this 

has spurred up demand for private 

credit, especially for fixed investment 

purposes, according to the review. 

On the flip side, the commodity recession 

has impacted the performance of crop 

sector, as the sowing area declined for 

many crops this season. “The cotton crop 

has been particularly affected, as its 

production is down also because of pest 

attacks and heavy rainfall,” the SBP said 

and added that the biggest impact of the 

global slowdown was seen on the 

country’s exports. 

are evolved that involve appropriate 

industrial policies as otherwise CPEC 

will just be a ‘transit’ route with no 

added benefits to Pakistan other than 

providing a shorter transport link to 

China and its trading partners. 

Western China contributes to 

approximately 20pc of economic 

activity and 30pc of the population of 

China. As it is likely that CPEC will 

be a conduit primarily for Chinese 

imports from the Gulf countries 

(classified as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, 

Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE) 

in the Middle East to western China, 

we need to analyse the current 

demand for Chinese imports from 

these countries. 

(Courtesy: DAWN) 

CPEC’s first phase to 

be completed 

by 2018: minister 

Minister Planning Development 

and Reform Ahsan Iqbal said 

recently, the first phase of China- 

Pakistan Economic Corridor 

(CPEC) would be completed by 

the year 2018. 

The minister, in a statement, said 

the production of 10,000 

megawatts of energy under CPEC 

would help overcome the energy 

crisis by 2018 as well as upgrade 

the existing road network of the 

country. 

Especially, western route through 

the construction of missing links on 

it would provide the safest and 

shortest passage of cargo from 

Gwadar seaport to upcountry for 

their onward movement to China’s 

western provinces. 



Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir 

Khan has announced the mediumterm 

(2015-18) Strategic Trade Policy 

Framework, setting an annual export 

target of $35 billion by the year 2018. 

It will be 

implemented 

with a total 

funding of 

Rs18bn in a 

period of three 

years. 

Four major 

targets include: 

boosting exports, 

improving 

e x p o r t 

competitiveness, 

transition from 

factor-driven 

economy to 

efficiencydriven 

and 

increasing share 

in regional trade. 

The minister defended the export 

target saying it is realistic and 

achievable. For current fiscal year, the 

government has already approved an 

amount of Rs6bn. The minister said 

this amount will be disbursed among 

exporters through the State Bank of 

Pakistan (SBP) to avoid chances of 

corruption. 

To increase the sophistication level of 

identified sectors including fans, home 

appliances, rice, cutlery and sports 

goods, an incentive for technology upgradation 

will be provided in the shape 

of investment support of 20pc or 

mark-up support of 50pc up to a 

maximum of Rs1 million a year per 

company will be available for import 

of new plant and machinery. 

Trade policy sets export target at $35bn 

To boost exports of leather, 

pharmaceutical, fisheries and surgical 

instruments, grant of up to Rs5m will 

be provided for specified plant and 

machinery or specified items to 

improve product design and 

encourage innovation in small and 

medium enterprises (SMEs). 

Moreover, a Common Facility Centre 

for surgical sector will be established. 

Matching grant will be provided to 

facilitate the branding and 

certification for faster growth of the 

SMEs and exports sectors through 

Intellectual Property Registration 

(including trade and service marks), 

Certification and Accreditation. 

The manufacturing in surgical 

instruments, sports and cutlery is 

largely done under the brands of 

foreign companies, resulting in lower 

prices for manufacturers in these 

sectors. 

Trade Chronicle - March - April 2016 - Page # 19 

For cutting the cost of doing business 

and increasing the competitiveness of 

the value-added non-textile selected 

sectors, draw-back for local taxes and 

levies will be given to exporters on 

free on 

b o a r d 

(FOB) 

values of 

t h e i r 

enhanced 

exports if 

increased 

by 10pc 

and beyond 

(over last 

year’s 

exports) at 

the rate of 

4pc on the 

increase. 

Federal Minister for Commerce Khurram Dastgir Khan announcing the Strategic 

Trade Policy Framework 2015-18. 

To reduce 

t h e 

wastage of 

raw and 

semi-processed produce and increase 

income of the farmers and foreign 

exchange earnings, 50pc support on 

the cost of imported new plant and 

machinery for specified underdeveloped 

regions or 100pc mark-up 

support on the cost of imported new 

plant and machinery will be provided. 

The Ministry of Commerce will 

continue working on its three-pronged 

strategy of trade diplomacy in the 

multilateral, regional and bilateral 

arenas for increasing market access. 

Under the policy, four products 

including basmati rice, horticulture, 

meat and meat products, and 

jewellery were identified for focused 

markets — Iran, China, Afghanistan 

and the European Union.


APCMA submits 

budget proposal 

The All Pakistan Cement 

Manufacturers Association 

(APCMA) has suggested to the 

Federal Board of Revenue to reduce 

the federal excise duty stepwise to 

zero as announced by the previous 

government to encourage cement offtake 

since this is never a luxury item. 

In the budget proposal sent to Board 

Chairman Muhammad Ali Tabba, his 

association counterpart said, "it's to 

be noted that the cement industry is 

subject to the FED at the rate of five 

percent of the retail price and the 

general sales tax at the rate of 17 

percent of the maximum retail price. 

These taxes come to around Rs 100 

per bag. 

"This incidence of high taxation 

encourages evasion and negatively 

impacts consumption. The 

abolishment of excise duty not only 

eliminates tax evasion but also 

enhances cement consumption at 

reduced price. Certain services are 

being taxed under the independent 

provincial sales tax laws, which are in 

vogue in Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 

and the Punjab. Such services are still 

taxable under both the 2005 Federal 

Excise Act as well as under the 

provincial sales tax laws, which 

tantamount to double taxation. 

He went on, "It is recommended that 

the federal excise duty on all services 

rendered in Sindh, Khyber 

Pakhtunkhwa or the Punjab may be 

abolished as it would eliminate double 

taxation and reduce cost of doing 

business. Similarly, before preferring 

appeal to the Office of Commissioner 

Cement Industry 

(Appeals) or Appellate Tribunal, a 

taxpayer is required to deposit the 

impugned duty demanded or penalty 

imposed in the appealable order. This 

mandatory compulsion is considered 

as a hindrance 

in the 

dispensation 

of justice." 

He also said 

the identical 

provisions in 

the income 

and sales 

taxes had 

already been 

repealed, and 

it was 

suggested that 

the same 

should also be 

removed from the excise law. 

He said, "The Iranian cement is being 

flooded into border areas of 

Balochistan and is being sold at lower 

prices as compared to locally 

produced cement due to inferior 

quality of the cement and its low cost 

due to export sanctions. This 

phenomenon is very detrimental for 

local manufacturers and in the longer 

run can challenge the survival of local 

industry. Additional regulatory duty 

should be immediately imposed on 

imports of the Iranian cement and 

some prior approval mechanism from 

the government should be in place 

regarding quality of the Iranian 

cement being imported in Pakistan. 

"This regulatory duty is a must to 

protect the local industry from the 

influx of the Iranian cement. Also, 

recent increase in duty on import of 

coal from one to six percent has 

adversely hit the local manufacturers 

and has drastically increased cost of 

doing business. "This latest increase 

in import duty on coal should be 

reduced to Zero percent as this would 

keep open the option of using coal as 

alternative source of energy. 

"The government had enacted the Gas 

Infrastructural Development Act of 

2011 (2011 Act), whereby the 

government charged a cess to all gas 

consumers except those of the 

domestic sector. "In May 2015, the 

government passed the GIDC Act 

2015. A Suit in the Sindh High Court 

was filed, challenging the levy of GIDC 

as well as its retrospective effect. The 

court granted a stay against charging 

of the GIDC under the 2015 Act on 

the first date of hearing. 

"We request that the charge/levy 

GIDC should be abolished now. It 

has increased the cost of doing 

business of the industrial sector. 

Further in current market scenario of 

declining fuel prices including 

liquefied natural gas in the 

international markets it will render 

domestic products uncompetitive in 

export markets." 



People & Events 

Zahid Hamid made law 

minister 

The federal government has 

appointed Zahid Hamid, a leader of 

PML-N, as law minister. 

According to an official 

announcement, He will have 

additional charge of the minister for 

climate change. He was inducted in 

the cabinet as law minister when the 

PML-N came into power after 2013 

general elections. But, he had to 

resign shortly because he was being 

labelled as a supporter of former 

president retired Gen Pervez 

Musharraf. 

Mr Hamid was law minister in Mr 

Musharraf’s cabinet when he imposed 

emergency in the country on Nov 3, 

2007. He had joined the PML-N after 

the 2008 general elections. 

Zahid Saeed made 

CS Punjab 

Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz 

Sharif has given approval to the 

appointment of Zahid Saeed as new 

Chief Secretary Punjab. 

Khizer Gondal has been appointed 

as Federal Secretary Industries and 

Arif Azeem made Officer on Special 

Duty, a PM’s Office statement said 

recently. 

Another two-year 

extension for DG IB 

Acknowledging the services of DG 

Intelligence Bureau (IB) Aftab Sultan, 


Sharif for the second time, extended 

his tenure by another two years. 

Aftab Sultan, a Grade-22 officer of 

the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP), 

was first appointed as Director 

General IB in June 2013 and his term 

was extended to one year in 2015, 

which was going to end on April 2 

this year. 

Born in 1954 in Faisalabad, he got 

his Bachelor of Arts degree and an 

LLB and later joined the PSP in 

1977.Owing to his excellent 

professional career, he was promoted 

to the position of DIG in 2000 and 

posted as Additional IG Finance and 

Welfare in Punjab Police in Grade- 

21. 

Mandviwalla elected 

Saarc Law president 

Barrister Mehmood Mandviwalla has 

been elected President of the South 

Asian Association for Regional 

Corporation (Saarc) Law. 

Mandviwalla was unanimously elected 

as the next president of Saarc Law 

during 13th Saarc Law Conference 

and 10th Chief Justices Conference 

in Nepal’s capital Katmandu. 

Ashtar Ausaf appointed 

attorney general 

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has 

appointed Ashtar Ausaf Ali, his adviser 

on law, as attorney general of Pakistan 

after accepting the resignation of 

Salman Aslam Butt. According to a 

brief official announcement issued on 

Monday night, “Prime Minister Nawaz 

Sha-rif has accepted the resignation 

of Salman Aslam Butt and app-ointed 

Ashtar Ausaf as the new AG”. 

Shaukat Hayat 

new IG NH&MP 

Shaukat Hayat has assumed the 

charge of 13th Inspector General of 

National Highways & Motorway 

Police. Shaukat Hayat, BS-22 officer 

of Police Service of Pakistan, has 

assumed the charge of Inspector 

General National Highways & 

Motorway Police. On his arrival at 

NH&MP Headquarters Islamabad, 

DIG Operations NH&MP Ghulam 

Rasool Zahid, DIG Headquarters 

Haleena Saeed and other senior 

officers warmly welcomed him. 

He is the 13th Inspector General of 

National Highways & Motorway 

Police. Shaukat Hayat is a notable 

police officer and previously he was 

serving as Additional Inspector 

General Police Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. 

Earlier, he had served on various senior 

posts of police department in KPK. 



SSGC sign MoUs with 

TCF, WWF 

Under its CSR initiatives, Sui Southern 

Gas Company Limited signed MoUs 

with Pakistan's two reputable nonprofit 

organisations, pledging its 

support to 'The Citizens Foundation' 

(TCF) and 'World Wide Fund' for 

Nature (WWF-P). In light of these 

MoUs, SSGC will provide financial 

support to TCF, Pakistan's leading 

organisation, committed towards 

promotion of education in 

marginalized / underprivileged class 

of the society. 

SSGC is supporting TCF for their 

Merck Marker Campus-II, Quetta 

and Ali Hasan Mangi Campus, 

Larkana for a period of three years. 

SSGC has been funding TCF for its 

educational activities since 2007. 

According to the another MoU signed 

with WWF-P, an international 

environmental organisation committed 

for preservation of environment, 10 

Biogas plants will be installed in village 

Managing Director SSGC, Mr. Khalid Rahman exchanging MoUs documents. 

Sonhari and Tousuf Hilayo some 35 

kms from Thatta in the surroundings 

of Keenjhar Lake where the 

inhabitants lack basic amenities. 

WWF-P is working in partnership 

with Community Based Organisations 

and SSGC has been collaborating 

with them for last several years. 

Managing Director SSGC, Khalid 

Rahman inked these MoUs on behalf 

of the utility, whereas Syed Asaad 

Ayub, CEO and Rub Nawaz, Senior 

Director signed on behalf of TCF and 

WWF-Pakistan, respectively. Khalid 

Rahman, while speaking on the 

occasion, appreciated both the 

organisations for their committed 

efforts in their respective areas of 

work and said that due to the passion 

of their managements and pursuing 

their burning desires to make a 

difference, both the NGOs have 

made a name for themselves. He said 

that SSGC will continue to support the 

good causes being undertaken by 

organisations serving the under 

privileged communities in Company's 

SSGC's franchise areas of Sindh and 

Balochistan. 

Dr. Daniel Ritz takes over 

as PTCL President & CEO 

The Board of Directors of Pakistan 

Telecommunications Company Ltd. 

(PTCL), Pakistan’s leading 

telecommunication and ICT services 

provider, has announced the 

appointment of Dr. Daniel Ritz as 

President & CEO of the PTCL Group 

with effect from 3rd March 2016. He 

succeeds Mr. Walid Irshaid, who was 

President & CEO of the PTCL Group 

since March 2007. 

Photograph taken at a farewell dinner held in honor of His Excellency Mr. 

Suhrab Hossain, High Commissioner of Bangladesh & Mr. Abdul Kader Jaffer, 

former Pakistan High Commissioner to U.K. along with distinguished guests, 

local diplomats and elite of Karachi 



Prof Dr Arshad Ali joins 

HEC as Executive 

Director 

Prof Dr Arshad Ali, former Rector, 

National Textile University and 

founding Principal of the NUST 

School of Electrical Engineering and 

Computer Science (SEECS) has 

joined the Higher Education 

Commission (HEC) as Executive 

Director. 

HEC’s governing body, Commission, 

had approved the selection of Dr 

Arshad Ali as Executive Director 

during its 31 st meeting held on January 

11, 2016. 

Decorated by the Government of 

Pakistan with Pride of Performance 

owing to his creative and strategic 

thinking and proven academic 

leadership skills, the association of Dr 

Arshad with academics and research 

spreads over 33 years. He has also 

been awarded with Sitara-e-Imtiaz 

that was conferred upon him on 23 rd 

March, 2016. 

Dr Ishrat joins Engro as 

Senior Advisor on Education 

An announcement 

made by Engro 

Corporation, Dr 

Ishrat Husain, 

former Dean & 

Director of one of 

Pakistan's top 

business schools, 

has graciously 

accepted the 

position of Senior 

Advisor on 

Education to 

E n g r o 

Corporation's 

Chairman, Hussain Dawood. 

Hussain Dawood commented: "It is 

a recognised fact that Engro has 

produced some of the finest 

management professionals Pakistan 

has ever seen. It is the vision of 

Engro to invest in its people, and now 

we are privileged to have an 

outstanding leader in Dr Ishrat 

Husain to champion the realisation 

of our vision to institutionalise 

development of leaders through 

Karachi School of Business & 

Leadership." 

Dr Ishrat Husain remarked: "I am 

excited to have the opportunity to 

contribute towards the development, 

nurturing, and grooming of leaders 

for corporate, non-profit as well as 

public sectors, and facilitating 

conversation amongst them to build 

consensus on issues of national 

importance." 

NHA chief apprises 

secretary of progress on 

projects under CPEC 

The newly incumbent Secretary 

Communication Khalid Masood 

Chaudhry has visited National 

Highway Authority (NHA) head 

office where he was briefed about 

the organisation's financial and 

administrative matters and the various 

development projects. The briefing 

was made by NHA Chairman Shahid 

Ashraf Tarar. 

The chairman apprised the visiting 

secretary about the progress on 

projects under the China-Pakistan 

Economic Corridor (CPEC). 

He was told that work on 288km 

section of the western corridor from 

Burhan to Dera Ismail Khan and 

394km Sukkur-Multan Motorway 

would start next month and the Prime 

Minister was expected to perform the 

groundbreaking of both these 

projects. 

He said that 335km section of 

Karakoram Highway (KKH) from 

Khunjrab to Rai Kot was successfully 

completed whereas the Hazara 

motorway (Burhan-Havelian) would 

be completed by March 2017. 

The Chairman said that NHA had 

taken steps to encourage the private 

sector and the concept of BOT (Built- 

Operate-Transfer) in order to reduce 

load on the national exchequer and 

three major projects worth Rs 91 

billion were awarded on BOT basis 

which included Karachi-Hyderabad 

motorway (M-9) and up-gradation of 

Islamabad-Lahore motorway (M-2). 

He said NHA had saved over Rs 300 

billions in various projects through a 

transparent and vigilant award of 

works procedure. Secretary 

Communications expressed his 

satisfaction over the progress of 

various projects and hoped they 

would be timely completed. 



Automobile News 

Auto policy unveiled, 

existing players - winners 

or losers? 

In a recent development, the 

Economic Coordination Committee 

(ECC) has finally approved the long 

awaited Automotive Development 

Policy (ADP) for the upcoming five 

years, where the primary focus is tilted 

towards the facilitation of higher 

volumes, encouragement of newer 

investments and enhancement of 

competition together with insurance 

of consumers’ welfare. We believe 

this would potentially encourage 

foreign players to enter the Pakistani 

market, however, since the process is 

expected to take over 30months (at 

least), existing players are expected to 

continue benefiting from the rise in 

demand. Key Features of the policy: 

Under the new policy, ADP has 

categorize new investments into three 

segments, naming Category A, B and 

C (shown on the right). In this regard, 

following is a summary of the 

provisions approved under the ADP 

policy: 

1) The age limit for imported vehicles 

remains unchanged at 3yrs. 

2) Step-wise reduction of 10% in 

duties on CBUs of 1800cc and below, 

each year in FY18 and FY19. This 

would provide sufficient cushion for 

the existing players till FY18 and 

would significantly support the sales 

of the new model launches expected 

in FY17. 

3) Advance payment has been 

restricted up to 50% of the total price 

where delivery should not exceed two 

months from the booking date. Any 

delays shall result in discount @ 

KIBOR+2% prevailing on the date of 

final delivery from the final payment. 

4) Category A & B: CKD imports of 

Minister for Defence Khawaja Asif announcing new Automotive Development 

Policy. 

non-localized part is fixed at 10% vs. 

25% for localized part for a period of 

five (A) and three (B) years for 

passenger cars and LCV segments for 

800cc and above. If the vehicle is 

below 800cc, rate would be 10% for 

three (A) and two (B) years, 

respectively. 

5) 100% one-off duty free import of 

plant and machinery for setting up 

new manufacturing facility for 

Category A Investors. 

6) Additionally, the tariff structure for 

existing players has been slightly 

changed for CKD units where sub 

components and components have 

been unified under a single duty 

regime of 10% (against 5% & 10% in 

the previous policy). Duty rates on 

CKD nonlocalized parts have been 

reduced from 32.5% to 30% and 

localized parts have been reduced 

from 50% to 45%. Duties for CBU’s 

remains unchanged except the 

exemption of RD (+1800cc). 

7) For CBU two and three wheelers, 

duties have been slashed from 65% to 

50%. While the policy creates a 

lucrative ground for newer players to 

step in, we believe the existing players 

(specifically INDU, PSMC and 

HCAR) would still end up beneficiaries 

in short to medium term due to: 

(a) time required for new entrants: It 

will at least take ~30 months to set up 

a new manufacturing facility or 

assembly line, providing room for 

existing players to bring in additional 

variants (which as per managements 

would take around 12 months) to 

maintain their market share and provide 

tough competition to the new entrants. 

(b) love for Japanese cars! Over the 

years, Pakistani users have shown 

greater interest in the Japanese cars 

owing to its comparatively cheaper 

spare parts, lower vehicle prices, 

availability of trained mechanical staff 

and greater re-sale value. On the other 

hand, historically, Korean players like 

Kia Motors and Hyundai Motors, 

European players like Fiat (CBU in 

90s) and American like Chevrolet did 

initially provided some competition for 

the existing players, but in the longer 

run failed to destabilize the position of 

the trio. Furthermore, although 

imported vehicles contributes sizably, 

over 90% of the imports comes from 

Japan with the same trio’s brands. 

(Courtesy: Invest and Finance 

Securities) 



Over 1 million attend 'My Karachi' exhibition: KCCI chief 

The three-day "My Karachi - Oasis 

of Harmony Exhibition", organised by 

Karachi Chamber of Commerce and 

Industry (KCCI) at Expo Centre, was 

visited by as many as one million 

people. Speaking at a news 

conference, KCCI president Younus 

Bashir said that the exhibition which 

concluded recently was visited by 

people belonging to different walks of 

life and they included diplomats, local 

and foreign businessmen, senior 

government officials and a large 

number of families. 

"Today, I am very happy to have seen 

overwhelming participation of local 

people as well as of foreign diplomats 

in the show," the KCCI chief said, 

adding that the exhibition was aimed 

at projecting Karachi's soft image in 

the country and abroad. He said that 

foreign diplomats in recent years used 

to be reluctant in participating in such 

events due to the city's poor law and 

order situation but, this year, 

ambassadors and consul generals of 

various countries, including Russia, 

Italy, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bahrain, 

Romania, Thailand, Switzerland, 

visited the exhibition along with their 

families. Some of them even set up 

their stalls and as such their 

Sindh Minister for Industries and Commerce, Muhammad Ali Malkani, Deputy 

Speaker Sindh Assembly Shehla Raza, Sindh Minister for Environment and 

Coastal Development Authority, Dr. Sikandar Ali Mandhro, Vice Chairmen 

Businessmen Group & Former Presidents KCCI Tahir Khaliq, Zubair Motiwala 

and Anjum Nisar and President KCCI Younus Muhammad Bashir cutting ribbon 

to inaugurate 13th My Karachi – Oasis of Harmony Exhibition 2016 at Karachi 

Expo Center recently. 

participation will help in attracting 

foreign investment in the country, he 

opined. 

Lauding the efforts of Rangers, police 

and other law-enforcement agencies 

in restoring peace in the city, Bashir 

urged the government to continue the 

ongoing Karachi operation till it 

achieves logical ends. "Any move to 

politicise the Rangers-led operation 

would tantamount to destabilising the 

city's peace and economy." he said, 

adding that durable peace was 

essential for the growth of the 

country's economy. 

Speaking on the occasion, prominent 

businessman Zuabir Motiwala said 

that the KCCI's exhibition is purely a 

non-commercial activity and it was 

continuously being organised for the 

last 13 years merely to project the 

city's soft image. The exhibition was 

visited by nearly one million people 

and around Rs 50 million was 

generated through the sale of various 

products which were showcased in 

the fair, he said, adding the KCCI will 

set up Gwadar-specific pavilion in its 

next exhibition and such a facility will 

help Karachiites in finding their role 

in the $46 billion CPEC project. 

CIO Fauji Fertiliser 

receives technology award 

The Fauji Fertiliser Corporation's 

chief information officer has 

received a 2016 Premier 100 

Technology Leaders Award. 

Brigadier Mukhtar Hussain (Retd) 

got the award from the IDG 

Computerworld during an 

AGENDA16 Conference held 

recently in American state of Florida 

for his diligence and dedication 

towards Information Technology 

regime and culture at the corporation. 

"The Premier 100 awards programme 

showcases the strategic thinking of 

an elite group of IT leaders who are 

using technology to digitally transform 

their organisations. These 100 men 

and women are working hand in hand 

with their business colleagues to give 

their organisations a competitive edge, 

while giving their employees a place 

to grow their careers. We're pleased 

to recognise their leadership and 

honour their achievements," said 

Scot Finnie, the Editor-in-Chief of 

Computerworld. The company is the 

leader in fertiliser manufacturing and 

excels in all areas of its operation 

including Information Technology. 

CIO FFC's achievements include 

leading the largest implementation of 

SAP ERP in Pakistan and 

establishing the state-of-the-art Tier 

3 Data Centre. 



Port t & Shipping News 

Senior Vice President of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Zia Ahmed Khan presenting Chamber’s 

crest to Chairman of China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC) Mr. Zhang Baozhong during his visit to KCCI. 

COO COPHC & CEO Gwadar International Terminal Limited Capt. Xiaolong Dai, Vice Chairman BMG Anjum Nisar, Vice 

President KCCI Muhammad Naeem Sharif, Former Presidents Khalid Firoz and Iftikhar A. Vohra, Former VP Nasir 

Mehmood, Capt. Anwar Shah and others are also seen in the picture. 

Gwadar Port to become 

distribution centre for ME 

market: Zhang 

China Overseas Port-holding 

Company's (COPHC) chairman 

Zhang Baozhong has said that his 

organisation in collaboration with 

government of Pakistan intends to 

convene international fair annually at 

Gwadar to highlight the potential and 

importance of its port which will soon 

become distribution centre for the 

Middle-East market. 

"Gwadar Port holds immense potential 

for industrial investment due to the 

opportunities offered through 

establishing deep seaport which is 

capable to accommodate large vessels 

of up to 70,000 dead-weight tonnage 

(DWT)," he added. 

He was speaking at a meeting of 

Karachi Chamber of Commerce and 

industry (KCCI). COPHC's chief 

executive officer for Gwadar 

International Terminal Limited, Capt. 

Xiaolong Dai, KCCI's senior vice 

president Zia Ahmed Khan, vice 

president Muhammad Naeem Sharif, 

former presidents Khalid Firoz and 

Iftikhar Ahmed Vohra and managing 

committee's members were also 

present on the occasion. 

Taking about the importance of 

Gwadar Port, Zhang Baozhong said 

that distance between Karachi and 

Gwadar has been reduced 

considerably with the completion of 

Makran Coastal Highway (N-20). The 

Gwadar Port upon its completion will 

be a gateway and hub of world 

businesses and trades as all types of 

international commercial activities will 

be taking place there. 

He said that COPHC was granted 40 

years concession in 2013 to manage 

and operate the Gwadar port and 

Gwadar Free Zone and the objective 

of his organisation is to develop the 

port with state-of-the-art facilities. 

Zhang said that the facilities being 

provided at the largest free zone, 

spreading over an area of more than 

968,000 square kilometres, include 

bonded warehouses, manufacturing, 

international purchasing, transit and 

distribution transshipment, 

commodity display and supporting 

services and where the federal, 

provincial and local taxes are exempted 

and the COPHC also enjoys tax 

holiday of 20 years, thereby making 

it an attractive port for marine trade. 

Speaking on the occasion, KCCI's 

former president Anjum Nisar said that 

the Gwadar Port will prove to be a 

game-changer for Pakistan and it will 

certainly change the destiny of the 

country. He was of the view that the 

COPHC's plan of establishing 

deepest berth of 20 meters at Gwadar 

Port will provide berthing facilitates 

to largest vessels, thereby bringing 

prosperity not only to Pakistan but 

also to the entire region. 

KCCI's senior vice president Zia 

Ahmed Khan said that sea ports in 

any country around the world play an 

important role but, unfortunately, 

ports in Pakistan were lagging behind 

in terms of efficient use of available 

facilities, reliability in handling freight 

and contribution to sustainable 

transport system. Hailing the Chinese 

investment at Gwadar Port and the 

China-Pakistan Economic Corridor 

(CPEC) projects, he said: "We are 

also fairly optimistic that keeping in 

view the Chinese expertise, Pakistan 

is going to get a world class sea port 

at Gwadar which will be wellequipped 

with state-of-the-art 

technology and facilities." 

"If Gwadar Port is equipped with latest 

facilities being used globally and 

special attention is given to speedy 

clearance and shipment of goods, it 

will surely become the 'Port of Choice' 

for the business and industrial 

community of Pakistan", he added. 



The 67th Annual General Meeting of 

National Bank of Pakistan was held 

at Marriot Hotel Karachi on 

Wednesday March 30th, 2016. The 

meeting was well attended by the 

shareholders. The Chairman Mr. 

Muneer Kamal and President Syed Iqbal 

Ashraf also attended the meeting. 

The shareholders were informed that 

the Bank achieved an exponential 

51% growth in pre-tax profit for the 

year as it increased by Rs. 11.2 billion 

from Rs. 22.0 billion for the year 2014 

to Rs. 33.2 billion for the year 2015. 

This is a complete turnaround from 

year 2013; and is higher by 368% 

from 2013. The increase in profit 

before tax is mainly derived through 

17% growth in core net interest/ 

Banking & Insurance News 

NBP records 51pc growth in profit 

mark-up income, and 15% growth in 

non interest / mark-up income. To 

mitigate the impact of the policy rate 

cut, the Bank managed its earning 

assets portfolio-mix in an optimum 

manner. It was presented to the 

shareholders that the improved 

results were achieved through 

effective execution of strategies 

which encompass improving deposits 

mix for higher net interest income, 

portfolio optimisation and re-profiling, 

cost controls, business automation and 

expansion in branch network. The 

bank also focused on recoveries 

against non-performing loans. 

The Board of Directors in its meeting 

held on February 19, 2016, had 

proposed a final cash dividend of Rs. 

7.50 per share (75%) for the year 

ended December 31, 2015. This 

translates into 92% dividend payout 

of the bank’s distributable profit for 

the year 2015 (after statutory reserve 

allocation) and is among the highest 

in the banking industry. 

Higher dividend payout reflects 

bank’s strong capital position with 

continuous focus on increasing 

stakeholder value by capitalising on 

opportunities to drive strong 

performance for the organisation and 

even higher payouts to the 

shareholders in the years ahead. The 

shareholders approved dividend 

payout of 75% cash dividend (Rs. 

7.50/- per share) as recommended by 

the Board of Directors of the bank. 

NBP and Citibank N.A. 

sign a customer 

facilitation agreement 

Citibank N.A., Pakistan (Citi) has 

entered into a Tax Payment 

Facilitation Agreement with National 

Bank of Pakistan (NBP). This 

arrangement will enable value added 

services to be provided to Citi's 

customers by NBP by replacing 

manual instruments with a more 

efficient electronic transfer 

mechanism leveraging on the State 

Bank of Pakistan's Real Time Gross 

Settlement System (RTGS). 

The signing ceremony was held at 

NBP's Head Office. Atiq Rehman - 

CEO Citi MEA, along with Nadeem 

Lodhi - CCO & MD Citibank N.A., 

Pakistan and Syed Ahmed Iqbal 

Ashraf, President-NBP along with 

Signing agreement between National Bank of Pakistan and Citibank N. A. 

Pakistan. Seen in the picture from left to Right; Mr. Nadeem Lodhi - CCO & MD 

Citibank N.A. Pakistan, Mr. Atiq Rehman - Chief Executive Officer, Middle East 

& Africa, of Citi-MEA, Mr. Mudassir H. Khan - Senior Executive Vice President 

/ Group Chief, Commercial Retail Banking Group and Mr. S. H. Irtiza Kazmi - 

Executive Vice President/Divisional Head-CRBG, of National Bank of Pakistan. 

Mudassir H. Khan, SEVP &Group 

Chief, CRBG from NBP were 

present at the ceremony which was 

also attended by other stakeholders 

from both Bank's as well. 

This arrangement will result in 

streamlining the tax payment process 

for Citi's clientele by allowing the 

payment to be routed electronically 

and will result in faster realization of 

tax proceeds. As the tax collection 

bank for FBR, NBP has played a vital 

role in structuring this solution. 



UBL signs agreement 

with NTL 

HBL granted license to setup a branch in China 

United Bank Ltd (UBL) and 

NADRA Technologies Limited 

(NTL) recently entered into a formal 

agreement for the provision of biometric 

based transaction 

authentication services on the Bank's 

ATM network. 

With the signing of this agreement, 

UBL has become the first Bank in 

the industry to be officially connected 

with NADRA to facilitate customers 

to access their accounts and conduct 

'card-less' transactions on ATMs. 

With its rapidly increasing digital 

footprint, UBL has now become the 

largest bio-enabled ATM network 

provider in the industry offering this 

unique service in conjunction with 

NADRA. The signing ceremony was 

held at the UBL Head Office. 

Speaking at the ceremony, 

Muhammad Zaman, Head of Digital 

Banking UBL said, "Remaining true 

to UBL's ethos of customercentricity 

and legacy of innovation, 

UBL is now the first amongst its peers 

to join hands with NADRA to extend 

added convenience and security to its 

customers. 

Meezan Bank approves 

12.5 pc final cash dividend 

The 20th AGM of Meezan Bank 

Ltd was held at its Head Office- 

Meezan House, Karachi. The 

proceedings of the meeting 

included adoption of the Annual 

Audited Accounts for the year 

ended Dec 31, 2015 and approval 

of 12.5 percent Final Cash 

Dividend in addition to 17.5 percent 

interim cash dividend that was paid 

by the Bank, bringing the total 

payout to Rs 3 for the year. 

Mr. Sultan Ali Allana, Chairman HBL along with Mr. Nauman K. Dar, President, 

CEO HBL receiving branch license for china from Mr. Wang Junshou, Director 

General of CBRC Xinjiang. 

HBL is proud to be the first bank 

from Pakistan to receive a license 

for setting up a branch in China. It 

is also the first South Asian bank to 

get the permission to set up its 

banking operations in Urumqi, the 

largest city in the province of 

Xinjiang, which borders Pakistan 

along the traditional Silk Route. 

Urumqi is a growing commercial 

and trade center and the regional hub 

for the Belt and Road Initiative in 

Central Asia. 

To mark this occasion a special 

ceremony was held at the office 

of CBRC Xinjiang in Urumqi. 

Speaking on the occasion Chairman 

HBL, Mr. Sultan Ali Allana said, 

“We are extremely proud to have 

been granted a license to establish 

our branch operations in China. 

This is a moment of great 

happiness, and a reflection of the 

Bank’s regional and global 

standing. We are grateful to the 

banking and regulatory authorities 

of China and Pakistan for reposing 

their confidence in HBL.” 

He further added, “It is a historic 

occasion and we are confident that 

it will pave the way for greater 

collaboration between Pakistan and 

China. HBL Urumqi branch will be 

a cornerstone of CPEC, which will 

Insha’Allah not only contribute to 

trade and commerce between the 

two countries, but will also become 

a conduit of progress and 

development for the region and its 

people in times to come.” 

Also present at the occasion, 

President and CEO HBL, Mr. 

Nauman K. Dar said, “Pakistan and 

China have had strong political ties 

for over 60 years and the economic 

relationship is reaching new heights 

with the launch of CPEC. 



MCB Bank PMI decreases 

to 63.44 in March 

Economic activity in the 

manufacturing sector expanded in 

March 2016 at a slower pace than in 

January, according to company 

executives surveyed in the MCB 

Bank Purchasing Managers Index 

(PMI). The PMI for the month of 

March registered a value of 63.44, a 

decrease from January's reading of 

64.54. As a rule of thumb, a reading 

of 50 or above indicates that 

manufacturing activity and the overall 

economy expanded. 

At present, the manufacturing sector 

appears to be growing at a solid pace 

with Large-Scale Manufacturing 

(LSM) increasing on a year-on-year 

basis by 4.12 percent in the July- 

January FY16 period, according to 

Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. An 

accommodative monetary policy has 

contributed to an uptick in credit to 

private sector and this is further 

supported by an increase in fixed 

investments for the fifth successive 

quarter according to the Monetary 

Policy Statement announced by the 

State Bank of Pakistan on 9th April 

2016. With improvements in energy 

availability and lower input prices, 

supply conditions for manufacturing 

Meezan Bank conducts 

intensive Islamic finance 

course 

Meezan Bank, Pakistan's leading 

Islamic Bank, recently organised a '6- 

Day Advanced Islamic Finance' 

course for its staff members at its 

Learning & Development Centre- 

Karachi. This course forms part of 

the Bank's regular efforts to keep its 

staff members updated on the latest 

firms have also improved. On the 

downside, however, declining exports 

continue to weigh in on growth 

prospects. Pakistan's exports have 

declined by 12.92 percent, in dollar 

terms from July - March FY16 when 

compared with the corresponding 

period of the previous fiscal year, 

according to the Pakistan Bureau of 

Statistics. The March MCB Bank 

PMI indicates that manufacturing 

activity continued to grow for the 14th 

consecutive reading but at a much 

slower pace compared to January. 

New orders increased at a faster 

pace in March, registering an index 

value of 73.61, compared to 73.06 in 

January. However, the Production 

Index decreased 1.67 points to 67.50. 

Meanwhile, Inventory levels 

decreased by 2.22 points to 59.72 

(previously registered at 61.94). 

Therefore, even though new orders 

grew at a faster pace than before, 

manufacturers were able to fulfil 

orders using existing inventories to 

meet the increased demand. 

Meanwhile, supplier deliveries were 

slower at 53.06 compared to an index 

value of 51.67 in January. A reading 

of below 50 indicates faster deliveries 

and a potential cooling down of the 

economy and vice versa. 

Employment in the manufacturing 

developments in the field of Islamic 

Banking and Finance as well as to 

enhance their understanding of 

practical issues underlying day-to-day 

business and financing transactions. 

The course was conducted by 

industry renowned Shariah scholars 

and Meezan Bank's skilled 

professionals. Different modes of 

training including classroom training, 

discussions, group projects and case 

studies were employed during this 

comprehensive course. The course 

sector also grew further, registering a 

value of 52.78. However, the pace of 

growth of employment appears to 

have stalled with the index value 

dropping by 4.17 points. 

The Prices Paid and Prices Received 

indices both pointed to an overall 

increase in price levels (with index 

values above 50 for both) which 

corroborates with Pakistan's current 

inflation dynamics. CPI Inflation has 

experienced a reversal since 

bottoming out in September 2015 at 

1.32 percent YoY and currently 

stands at 3.94 percent YoY for the 

month of March. 

Manufacturing concerns reported 

that the rate of increase of prices paid 

has also increased, with the Prices 

Paid Index increasing by 3.61 points 

to 63.06. Similarly, the rate of 

increase of prices received also 

accelerated, with the index increasing 

3.61 points to 64.44. 

Overall, the manufacturing sector still 

remains on a moderate rate of growth 

and this indicates an uplift of the 

general economy. Manufacturing 

PMI serves as a leading indicator of 

economic activity as health of the 

manufacturing sector is typically 

highly correlated with future GDP 

levels. 

was designed to take Islamic finance 

professionals at the Bank - 

particularly those who deal with the 

high-end transactions, customers and 

other stakeholders directly- to 

advanced levels of practical 

knowledge. The program was 

tailored to enhance the professional 

skills of the Islamic bankers of 

Meezan Bank by stimulating 

discussions and developing their 

understanding of Islamic finance by 

combining theoretical concepts with 

real world business scenarios. 



MCB Bank in talks to 

buy NIB operations 

Summit Bank Appoints Mohammad Zahir Esmail as 

Its President and CEO 

MCB Bank announced recently that 

it is interested in buying the operations 

of NIB Bank. 

According to a filing with the Pakistan 

Stock Exchange (PSX), MCB Bank 

and Fullerton Financial Holdings Pte 

Ltd (FFH) were in a preliminary nonbinding 

discussion on a merger. 

The FFH is the majority shareholder 

of NIB Bank through its whollyowned 

subsidiary Bugis Investments 

(Mauritius) Pte Ltd. 

The terms of the transaction are in 

preliminary stages of discussion and 

are subject to, among other things, due 

diligence and all necessary regulatory 

and shareholder approvals. MCB and 

NIB will make an appropriate 

announcement should there be any 

further material development. 

The Chairman & Board of Directors 

of Summit Bank appointed 

Mohamad Zahir Esmail as its 

President and Chief 

Executive Officer. 

He will take over 

from the retiring 

President and CEO, 

Mr. Husain Lawai 

who retired after 

serving over 45 

years in leading 

positions and has 

been elevated to play 

his role as Vice 

Chairman on the Board of Directors. 

Mr. Esmail has 48 years of 

diversified banking experience 

including Conventional as well as 

Islamic. He joined the banking 

industry in 1968 as an Officer at 

Habib Bank Ltd, Karachi Pakistan. 

He had also been associated with 

Habib Bank AG Zurich, H.B.Z Bank 

South Africa, Habib Metropolitan 

Bank, Arif Habib 

Bank Limited and My 

Bank Limited where 

he imparted his 

professional 

experiences in the 

successful growth of 

these banks. 

On this occasion, Mr. 

Nasser Abdulla 

Hussain Lootah, 

Chairman of Summit Bank said, 

“With the experience and wellrecognized 

qualities that Zahir 

Esmail brings to the table, he was 

the best candidate to head the 

entity and we believe he will carry 

on the good work done by Husain 

Lawai. 

Sindh Bank earns 

Rs1,230m profit after tax 

The Board of Directors of Sindh 

Bank met on March 1, 2016 to 

review and approve the annual 

audited accounts for the year ended 

December 31, 2015. During the year 

the bank earned a profit before tax 

of Rs 2,051 million registering an 

increase of 27.3 percent as 

compared to Rs 1.612 million of last 

year. Profit after tax and earnings 

per share were reported at Rs 1,230 

million and Rs 1.23 respectively. 

The bank maintained an overall 

growth in deposits, advances and 

accounts opened as Deposits 

increased by 36 percent and stood 

at Rs 84.076 billion as compared to 

Rs 61.884 billion as on December 31, 

2014, Gross Advances rose by 13.4 

percent to Rs 46.708 billion as against 

Rs 41.201 billion as on December 31, 

2014, and number of accounts stood 

at 358,084 registering an increase of 

115 percent over 2014. 

The network expanded to 250 on-line 

branches spread over 125 cities/ 

towns across Pakistan. This included 

13 dedicated Islamic Banking 

branches (IBBs) and two Islamic 

Banking windows (IBWs), providing 

a wide range of market based 

Shariah Compliant products and 

services. Another 50 branches 

including 7 dedicated IBBs and 13 

IBWs are planned to be opened 

during 2016. 

The bank’s ATM network is also 

expanding at a fast pace, as 87 new 

machines were added during 2015, 

bringing the total to 192 ATMs. 

Plans are in the pipeline to add 73 

more machines to the network 

during 2016. 



EFU Life wins CSR Award 

83rd AGM of EFU 

General Insurance held 

At the 83rd Annual General Meeting 

of E F U General Insurance Ltd held 

on April 2, 2016, Members of the 

Company approved Audited 

Accounts of the Company for the 

year 2015. The Company earned 

after tax profit of Rs. 4.03 billion in 

2015 as against Rs. 1.83 billion in 

2014. The earnings per share was Rs. 

25/21 as against Rs. 11/43 last year 

2014. The written premium for the 

year crossed Rs. 15.2 billion. 

The Members approved the Board’s 

proposal and declared the final cash 

dividend @ of Rs. 4/50 per share (i.e. 

45%) and approved issuance of bonus 

shares in proportion of 1 (one) new 

ordinary share for every 4 existing 

ordinary shares held (i.e. 25%). This 

is in addition to already paid three 

interim cash dividends of Rs. 1/00 

each per share (i.e. 30%), making 

total distribution for the year to 100%. 

EFU Life Assurance Limited, a 

leading private life insurance 

provider in the country, has been 

conferred with ‘CSR Award 2016’ 

in the category of ‘Social Impact’ 

at the 5th Corporate Social 

Responsibility Awards, organized by 

The Professionals Network and 

Ethical Business Update (EBU). 

This award is the first and only 

registered CSR Award of Pakistan 

registered with IPO. Ms. Aman 

Hussain, Head of Marketing, EFU 

Life Assurance Ltd., received the 

award on behalf of the company. 

The awards recognized the efforts 

of the companies who are at the 

helm of Social Responsibility efforts 

in Pakistan. 

EFU Life has been in the forefront 

in promoting and contributing to the 

causes of healthcare and education. 

It believes in playing a crucial role 

and building a positive relationship 

with the society in which it operates. 

For serving this purpose, EFU Life 

has joined hands with numerous 

renowned non-governmental 

organizations for a better and 

prosperous Pakistan. 

Govt to revamp State Life 

The government has decided to 

reform and modernise State Life 

Insurance Company (SLIC). Chairing 

a meeting to review State Life’s 

performance, Finance Minister Ishaq 

Dar said the government would 

extend all possible support to SLIC 

for structural reforms aimed at quality 

service delivery as well as encourage 

participation by the private sector. It 

may be mentioned that privatisation 

of SLIC is on the agenda. 

Mr Dar said after achieving 

macroeconomic stability the government 

is now focused on growth, and in this 

regard entities like SLIC have a key role 

to play. SLIC Chairperson Nargis Ghaloo 

briefed the finance minister about the 

financial profile of the corporation. State 

Life’s investment portfolio encompasses 

government securities, TFCs/approved 

government securities, equities, bank 

deposits, investment properties and 

policy loans. 



Telecommunication News 

Number of mobile phone 

users reach 129.85m by 

Feb-end 

Mobilink Digital Innovation Lab inaugurated by 

Minister of State for IT & Telecom 

Mobile phone users in Pakistan 

reached at 129.85 million at the end 

of February 2016, after five mobile 

phone companies added a 

combined user base of 1.8 million 

customers during the reported 

month, according to data released 

by the Pakistan Telecommunication 

Authority (PTA) recently. 

Mobilink leads the charts with 37.48 

million customers while Telenor is 

closing in the gap with 36.02 million 

subscribers. However, after planned 

merger of Mobilink and Warid, 

Mobilink will be able to widen the 

lead with more than 48 million postmerger 

customers. Zong has 24.86 

million customers at the end of 

February 2016 whereas Ufone 

stood with 20.59 million customers 

till the time. Warid has a total of 

10.9 million customers. 

In a development which is to further 

drive digitization in the country, 

Mobilink has inaugurated its Digital 

Innovation Lab, a collaborative 

space for supporting and 

accelerating key Digital Initiatives. 

Ms. Anusha Rahman, Minister of 

State for IT & Telecom was the 

chief guest at the ceremony, and 

expressed the government’s support 

for all such initiatives. 

The Digital Innovation Lab is an 

innovation center where key 

internal stakeholders, industry 

professionals, thought leaders and 

Digital Entrepreneurs can utilize 

Mobilink’s expertise to create and 

explore innovative products and 

services in the Digital Space. 

However, the data shows that the 

number of 3G/4G users reached 

26.19 million by end February, 2016 

as compared to 24.709 million by 

end January 2016 showing a 

reasonable growth in modern 

mobile broadband services with 

each passing month. The number 

of 4G (Zong) users jumped from 

416,676 subscribers in January 

2016 subscribers to 481,730 by end 

February. According to PTA, the 

number of Zong, Mobilink, Ufone 

and Telenor reached 5,430,155, 

7,930,515, 4,879,653 and 7,213,512 

3G users respectively by February 

2016. Warid LTE subscriber 

reached 257,726 during this period. 

Mr Liu Dianfeng, |CEO Zong along with his executive team members at a cake 

cutting ceremony held to celebrate recognition of best performance in QoS 

survey carried out by PTA. 



Aviation & Hotel News 

Pakistan Airways to be 

made premier airlines 

Turkish Airlines office opens in Islamabad 

The government has initiated serious 

working for developing the Pakistan 

Airways at par with international 

airlines. Officially, it has been 

termed the premier airlines of the 

country recently. Prime Minister 

Muhammad Nawaz Sharif chaired 

a meeting on the aviation affairs at 

the PM House where discussions 

took place about upcoming airlines. 

The participants of the meeting gave 

a comprehensive presentation to the 

prime minister for steps being taken 

for creating a premier airline that 

should be a reflection of the past 

image of the national flag carrier 

internationally. The meeting 

reviewed progress on bringing the 

Pakistan Airways on par with 

international airlines. 


Sharif directed the authorities 

concerned that the crew and staff 

of Pakistan Airways should be 

trained from best institutions and 

state-of-the-art services for 

passengers not less than any 

international standards, must be 

ensured. Except the core business, 

rest of the services should be 

outsourced to meet the professional 

standards, the prime minister added. 

He stressed that the airlines should 

set high service standards in the world 

for being the face of the country. 

There should be lean management 

structure for optimising airlines’ 

efficiency and service delivery, and 

the emoluments structure should 

commensurate with the quality of 

human resource. 

Turkish Airlines has opened a new 

office location in the heart of 

Islamabad, strengthening its 

presence in the capital city. 

Strategically located in main F7- 

Markaz, the new office will be able 

to serve air travellers more 

conveniently. Ribbon cutting 

ceremony was attended by the 

dignitaries from the travel world, 

diplomats, media, government and 

private sector as well. 

On this unveiling, General Manager 

Turkish Airlines Islamabad, Yunus 

Mert, said that Turkish Airlines would 

continue to offer amicable and 

improved customer service at its new 

address at F-7 Markaz, Islamabad, 

PIA bill finally passed 

A joint sitting of the Parliament 

recently passed "The Pakistan 

International Airlines Corporation 

(Conversion) Bill, 2016" to convert 

the national flag carrier into a 

public limited company. 

It also passed "The Privatisation 

which will allow it to serve their large 

client base not only from Islamabad 

but also those who come from the 

surrounding areas. Turkish Airlines 

being the leading airline in Europe 

continues to be delightfully different 

by offering unique customer service 

to its large client base. 

The opening of the new city office 

will not only provide convenience for 

travellers but also opportunities for 

businesses and professionals. 

Turkish Airlines look forward to 

continuing to contribute to 

Pakistan’s economic expansion, 

hence strengthening bilateral ties 

between brotherly countries, i.e. 

Pakistan and Turkey. 

Commission (Amendment) Bill, 

2016, The Emigration 

(Amendment) Bill, 2016 and The 

Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill, 

2016." The proceeding of the 

House remained suspended for two 

hours as opposition wanted to 

discuss first the issue of the 

Panama Papers while the 

government wanted to take up the 

legislation.

TC March - April 2016

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