RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Sindh governor Muhammad Zubair Umar said on Friday that foreign investors should be allowed to buy shares of the Pakistan Stock Exchange to increase their shareholding to 51 percent.

He was speaking at a ceremony at the Pakistan Stock Exchange to celebrate completion of the process of offer for sale of the Stock Exchange’s shares.

The governor said that Stock Exchange has achieved milestones in the last few years and its index has touched 53,000 points for the first time in its history. The market is under pressure these days as investors are cautious due to the ongoing efforts by the Supreme Court’s joint investigation team.

However, he said, nothing dramatic was going to take place on July 10, 2017, when the team is to submit its report.

“Nothing is happening on July 10 and beyond it, and the present government will complete its five year term,” said the governor, who is an ally of the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. He gave the assurance that the general elections were going to be held in 2018.

Noting that the law and order situation has improved significantly, the governor said efforts should now be made to increase the investor base. “We should increase economic activities to attract more local and foreign investors to invest here”, he said.

He praised the efforts of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), the Pakistan Stock Exchange and other stakeholders for successful divestment and completion of demutualization of Stock Exchange.

SECP chairman Zafar Hijazi, who could not attend the ceremony, described the situation in a massage as “just a beginning of promotion of Pakistan capital market.”

Speaking on this occasion, Lead Consultant Arif Habib said the process of IPO of 20 percent shares of the Stock Exchange has been completed successfully. He proposed that foreign investors should be allowed to buy shares in the Stock Exchange. He also discussed the challenges and opportunities after divestment of PSX.

The chairman of the Divestment Committee of the Pakistan Stock Exchange, Shahzad Chamdia, its chief executive officer, Haroon Askari, and general manager Sani-e-Mehmood also spoke on this occasion.