LAHORE: The All Pakistan Business Forum has said that target of taking exports to $35 billion by 2020 is much below the Pakistan’s export potential, asking the planners to also facilitate non-textile exporters to ensure sustainable increase because this sector can exploit many new markets through government facilitation.

APBF president Ibrahim Qureshi said that the most serious threat to the economy in the new fiscal year would be inflation. Another threat is that 2018 is the election year and in an election year, usually governments go on spending sprees, triggering the inflation. This was happened in 2008 as well as in 2013 by our previous governments. Inflation would also be a threat to rupee stability as inflation cannot be exported.

Rejecting the government plan of approaching the International Monetary Fund for financial assistance once again, he said it would bring fresh wave of price-hike. He said the people would not benefit from the IMF loan as the lavish spending has been continuing.

He said the IMF loan would have devastating effects on economy, as with more taxes, increased rates of utilities and cost of production would further increase. This will render the Pakistani exports non-competitive in the globalised competitive environment, he feared.

He argued that policies dictated by the IMF were not always suitable for the situation of the country. He argued that there were several examples of how the IMF failed to understand the dynamics of the country that they were dealing with. He also rejected the constant hike in power as well as gas rates, hitting directly to the economy.—PR