Friday, 25 January, 2013

KARACHI

ISMAIL DILAWAR

THE backbreaking inflation inthe country might have easedto a single digit figure in termsof Consumer Price Index(CPI), but the current alarm-

ing growth in monetary expansion is posinga visible threat to macroeconomic stabilityin the fragile economy.

According to central bank data, broadmoney, which is indicative of the supply ofmoney in the economy and is also calledM2, grew by seven percent or Rs 535.232billion during the period ranging fromJuly 1 and January 11 of the current fiscalyear. This shows a growth of 2.72 percentor Rs 248.38 billion when compared with4.28 percent, or in monetary terms, Rs286.851 billion of the corresponding pe-

riod of the previous year.Whereas the period under review saw

the cash-strapped federal and provincialgovernments’ inflationary borrowings fromthe central bank contracting to a positivezone, the currency in circulation balloonedby an alarming 57 percent or by Rs 101 bil-lion to a massive Rs 278 billion.

The months in review last year had seencurrency worth Rs 177 billion circulating inthe local money market. This increased sup-ply of money may cause the currently-sub-dued inflationary pressure to bounce back.

Though most economic observers donot buy it, government claims to have re-duced its reliance on the State Bank to caterto its ever-burgeoning budgetary needs. TheSBP figures for the review period show thatthe funds-starved government still main-tains a credit balance of Rs 165 billion withthe central bank. Discarding any conspiracy

theories, this is a very encouraging scenariocompared to last year when the same periodhad seen the resource-constrained govern-ment borrow over Rs 173.6 billion.

But analysts smell something bad inthese numbers saying the democratically-elected government, which is going for bal-loting in a few weeks’ time, was indirectlyborrowing from the State Bank.

The critics suspect the governmenttends to neutralize inflationary impact ofits huge bank borrowings by raisingmoney from the scheduled banks who inreturn receive the credited billions fromthe central bank in the face of weekly in-jections of billions of rupees liquid cash inthe system.

The SBP data on the scheduled banks’budgetary lending to the government putenough weight behind this perception. Dur-ing July-Jan, the government borrowed over

Rs 794 billion as against Rs 603 billion inFY12. The Rs 794 billion raised this yearshows an upsurge of over Rs 191 billion overthe same period last year. Wednesday alsosaw the government auctioning the MarketTreasury Bills (MTBs) to the tune of Rs 313billion to primary dealers, most of thembeing scheduled banks.

The risk-averse banks offered Rs 470billion to the government which, however,accepted bids of the above worth.

This excessive investment in the risk-free government securities has reflected pos-itively on the banks’ Net Domestic Assets(NDAs) that, according to SBP, swelled be-yond Rs 535 billion compared to last year’sRs 459 billion. To the contrary, the Net For-eign Assets (NFAs) of the banks depleted tonegative Rs 323 million against negative Rs173 billion in FY12.

The official data reveal that the govern-

ment, through the central bank, would beborrowing over a trillion rupees from banksduring the ongoing third fiscal quarter, Jan-march FY13. Secured in whatever form, thegovernment’s budgetary borrowings have aheavy bearing on the country’s ailing econ-omy that reflects in one way or the other.

Even the country’s stocks market, whichis booming these days on the back of earn-ings announcement season, saw some in-vestors concerned over the adverse affects ofgovernment borrowings.

“Rising local cement prices, higher tex-tile sector exports, easing political uncer-tainty and renewed foreign interest played acatalyst’s role in the positive close in stocksat KSE ahead of major earning announce-ments due this week amid concerns forhigher government borrowings,” said AshenMehanti, a senior equity analyst from ArifHabib Securities.

Alarming 7% monetary growth in first half of FY13

KARACHI

STAFF REPORT

The central bank on Thursday said so far25 guarantees of over Rs 7 billion hadbeen issued under the MicrofinanceCredit Guarantee Facility (MCGF) whichwas launched in 2008 to match the mas-sive scarcity of funding to the majority ofthe local microfinance market.

The said guarantees had been issuedfor five leading microfinance (MF)providers enabling micro-credit access toaround 350,000 new borrowers.

“The facility, due to its risk sharingstructure has achieved a leverage of 3times, mobilising an additional Rs 5 bil-lion from private capital markets, estab-lishing that microfinance may not bethat as risky as a business proposition,and most of all, the facility has en-gaged 16 commercial banks and re-cently retail investors in funding themicrofinance providers,” said Gover-nor State Bank of Pakistan(SBP)Yaseen Anwar while addressingthe closure ceremony of Term Finance(Sarmaya) Certificate (TFC) of TameerMicrofinance Bank.

Declaring that the central bank waspursuing a multi-pronged approach totackle the challenge of high financial ex-clusion in the country, Anwar said theMCGF of UK £ 15 million had been in-strumental in relaxing funding con-straints of the microfinance sector inPakistan.

He said MCGF had helped buildlinks between micro borrowers andbanks/DFIs. The familiarisation of thebanks/DFIs with the client will eventu-ally lead to mainstreaming and gradua-tion of the micro borrower, he said.

The SBP Governor said the facilityhas introduced microfinance business tobanks/DFIs as banks have to evaluate themicrofinance providers which must have

helped them develop their own sense ofthe risks involved in microfinance. As aresult, banks are now more willing to in-vest in micro banking. Anwar said the da-cility had also helped microfinanceproviders to offer small ticket sizes for re-tail investors. This had offered small re-tail investors an alternate channel forinvesting their savings and earning rela-tively higher returns, encouraging theconcept of micro-savings.

Anwar said the SBP had launchedthe facility with the help of UK’s DFID in

2008. “Prior to the launching of this fa-cility, and apart from one-off fundingdeals between the few MF providers andcommercial banks, the commercial fund-ing market was nonexistent for microfi-nance providers and the microfinanceindustry was severely handicapped andhighly donor dependent for its fundingneeds,” he added.

The SBP Governor said the scope ofthe facility had recently been enhanced toallow microfinance providers to mobilisenon-bank financing from capital mar-kets, further diversifying sources of fi-nancing for micro borrowers, adding that

it is heartening to see that a number ofmicrofinance providers, includingTameer Microfinance Bank, while bene-fiting from the MCGF, have helped thefacility attain its objective.

“In particular, SBP is aiming to de-velop an efficient and sustainable mar-ket-based financial structure meeting thefinancial needs of the marginalised pop-ulation of the country including womenand young people,” he said.

He said that the issuance of this TFCwill go a long way in diversifying fundingfor the microfinance sector. “I stronglyencourage all financial market players todevelop a long term vision for making thefinancial sector in Pakistan more inclu-sive,” Anwar said.

Anwar observed that the estimatedmicrofinance market of 25-30 millionclients may not necessarily just needcredit services. “It is of utmost impor-tance that the industry should aim toprovide holistic and appropriate finan-cial services, including deposit, credit,

insurance and remittance services,” hesaid, adding that the SBP is well aware ofthe fact that the industry is faced with anumber of challenges in the way ofachieving this objective. “SBP is activelyengaged with all stakeholders to addressthe sector specific challenges in a sustain-able manner,” he said. He noted that thefinancial sector in Pakistan remained re-stricted in its outreach both in terms ofits depth and breadth. According to theAccess to Finance Study of 2008, hardly12% of the population has access to for-mal banking services and another 32% isinformally served whereas 56% of theadult population is totally excluded, hesaid adding that similarly in Pakistan, theestimated size of the microfinance mar-ket is in the range of 25-30 million clientswhich indicates that the current level ofmicrofinance access at 2.4 million clientsis only 10% of the potential market.

SBP says 25 guarantees worth over Rs7b issued under MCGF

KARACHI

STAFF REPORT

Habib Bank Limited (HBL) and China Union Pay(CUP) launched on Thursday the UnionPay debitcards among 140 countries of the world includingPakistan where some 3.4 billion bank customers areusing the cards. The HBL, Pakistan’s largest bank, hasinitiated acquiring of international UnionPay Cardsfor usage on its ATM network.

This was jointly announced by China UnionPayChairman Su Ning and HBL President and CEO Nau-man K Dar at a ceremony held at HBL Plaza.

Also present on the occasion were senior execu-tives of both organisations.

Speaking on the occasion, Dar said, “As Pak-istan’s largest bank HBL continually strives towardsproviding innovative financial solutions. This allianceties in with our mission to create strong value for our

customers.” HBL boasts Pakistan’s largest branchand ATM networks. The bank is on a strong growthtrajectory. Last year HBL crossed the milestone figureof PKR 1 trillion in domestic deposits becoming Pak-istan’s first bank to record this achievement.

HBL, CUP launch UnionPay debit cards in PakistanLAHORE

STAFF REPORT

The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry willestablish Green Productivity Cell that would work incollaboration with EU Switch Asia Programme andSMEDA to increase production efficiency and reducewastage in targeted sectors including Textile, Food Pro-cessing and Pharmaceutical Industry.

The decision was made at a meeting between theLCCI President Farooq Iftikhar and Martin Straehle,International Project Coordinator of bfz gGmbH. LCCIVice President Mian Abuzar Shad and representativesof SMEDA were also present on the occasion. The pro-posed Green Productivity Cell that would be establishedat the LCCI premises would also work out a methodol-ogy to create awareness among the select SME sectorsabout international quality and environmental stan-dards. The establishment of Green Productivity Cell

would be a giant leap by all means as it would not onlybe strengthening the local manufacturing sector butwould also be giving a quantum jump to Pakistani ex-ports and the ultimate beneficiary would be the busi-nessmen in this part of the world, said LCCI president.

LCCI to establish Green Productivity Cell

FDI surges by 6 % during

July-December 2013ISLAMABAD: Pakistan during July-December 2012 has attracted a ForeignDirect Investment (FDI) of US $ 562.8million as against US $ 531.1 million re-ceived during the corresponding periodlast year. “The 6 percent increase in theFDI inflows during the first six months isa manifestation of investor confidence onthe prudent economic and investmentfriendly policies of the present demo-cratic government and would further im-prove in the days to come,” said Ministerof State for Finance and Economic Af-fairs Saleem H Mandviwalla who is alsothe Board of Investment (BoI) Chairman,on Thursday. “An improvement in theforeign direct inflows is mainly driven bythe investment in the oil and gas explo-ration and financial sectors by globalcompanies in the country,” he said. APP

AHIL winds up AH DowJones SAFE PakistanKARACHI: The board of directors ofArif Habib Investments Ltd (AHIL) hasdecided to wind up its investmentscheme AH Dow Jones SAFE PakistanTitans 15 Index from January 24 due todecline in net assets below the statutoryrequirement of Rs 100 million.According to information sent toKarachi Stock Exchange onThursday, the management companyhas a view that the continuity of thescheme is no more commercially “vi-able”.The trustee has already given its con-sent on winding up of the scheme.The company said that unit holders,whose names appear in the register ofunit holders of the scheme at the closeof January 23, will be paid in propor-tion to their respective interest in theassets of the scheme. The scheme willcease to carry on its activities from Jan-uary 24, except to the extent necessaryfor it to be wound up. APP

Cement; a commodity

dearer for locals

ISLAMABAD: National Assembly was in-formed on Thursday that cement export isexempted from excise duty and GST butboth taxes are applicable to cement beingsold in the local market.Parliamentary Secretary Industries PirHaider Ali Shah told the House that if theParliament desired to provide relief to ce-ment consumers, it can decide to withdrawexcise duty and GST for cement used withinthe country. “This will definitely bring downcement prices,” he said.He said different factors like increase inpower and gas tariff, inflation and dollar ex-change rate resulted in increase of cementprices. The government also receives 16%GST on cement and Rs 400 excise duty pertone, he said, adding that the governmenthad convened a meeting of cement produc-ers for January 31 which the members canalso participate in.Members Abdul Majeed Khan, ShakirBashir Awan, Nighat Parveen Mir, NisarTanveer and Shireen Arshad Khan haddrawn the attention of the Minister for In-dustries towards increase in cement pricesby Rs 50 per bag. The members questioned as to what stepsthe government will take to stop smugglingof cement to Afghanistan, announce sub-sidy on the commodity and check its hoard-ing and black marketing especially in smallcities and towns where it is being sold at amuch higher price. APP

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BusinessFriday, 25 January, 2013

Major Gainers

COMPANY OPEN HIGH LOW CLOSE CHANGE TURNOVER

Unilever Food 3800.00 3990.00 3850.00 3905.00 105.00 60

Bata (Pak) 1313.95 1355.00 1260.10 1355.00 41.05 250

Colgate Palmolive 1424.00 1450.00 1450.00 1450.00 26.00 50

Nestle Pakistan Ltd. 4776.25 4850.00 4800.00 4800.00 23.75 540

Indus Dyeing 674.57 696.00 640.85 696.00 21.43 600

Major Losers

UniLever Pak 9949.99 9950.00 9900.00 9914.83 -35.16 260Sanofi-Aventis Pak 325.00 316.00 316.00 316.00 -9.00 100Murree Brewery 135.00 140.00 130.00 130.08 -4.92 15,700J.D.W.Sugar XD 96.05 98.00 92.00 92.02 -4.03 3,000Clariant Pak 274.35 275.00 269.01 270.67 -3.68 8,900

Volume LeadersFauji Cement 7.48 7.92 7.46 7.80 0.32 60,334,000Maple Leaf Cement 16.86 17.86 17.00 17.86 1.00 22,630,000Byco Petroleum 13.92 14.66 13.90 14.37 0.45 20,021,000Jah.Sidd. Co. 16.34 16.86 16.30 16.53 0.19 13,867,000Fatima Fertilizer Co 25.80 26.60 25.45 25.88 0.08 13,392,500

Interbank RatesUSD PKR 97.6408GBP PKR 154.6922JPY PKR 1.0897EURO PKR 130.1844

Forex RatesBUY SELL

US Dollar 98.20 98.90 Euro 129.67 132.12 Great Britain Pound 153.31 156.16 Japanese Yen 1.0777 1.0970 Canadian Dollar 96.68 99.12 Hong Kong Dollar 12.42 12.72 UAE Dirham 26.55 27.00

Saudi Riyal 26.05 26.44

ISLAMABAD: Dean of Diplomatic Corps, Rodolfo J. Martin

Saravia with Chaudhry Faisal Mushtaq and staff during

Truck Art Virtual Cultural Carnival organised by Roots

Millennium Schools, Wahid Campus, F-10/2, Islamabad. PR

Warid offers ‘Postpaid to Prepaid

Balance Transfer’ service

LAHORE: Warid Telecom brings another fasci-nating service for its customers; Postpaid To Pre-paid Balance Transfer. This service will allowWarid Telecom’s postpaid customers to share bal-ance with Warid prepaid and Glow customers.Warid Telecom has been leading the way of innova-tion in Pakistan’s telecom industry and Postpaid ToPrepaid Balance Transfer service is yet another in-dustry first by Warid Telecom. Through this serviceWarid Telecom’s postpaid customers can transferamounts up to Rs.50, in denominations of Rs.10,with Warid’s prepaid and Glow customers by send-ing “B<space>Recipient Number<space>TransferAmount” to 2424. This service reflects Warid Tele-com’s commitment towards providing best qualityservices to its customers by introducing unique andinnovative services in the industry. PR

JS Bank hosts ICFJ delegation

KARACHI: A delegation of US-based journalistsfrom International Centre for Journalists (ICFJ) werehosted by Mr. Kalim ur Rahman - CEO, JS Bank at alocal hotel. Their visit to Pakistan has been organizedas part of the US - Pakistan Professional Partnership

in Journalism Forum to enhance the exchange ofviews between the two nations and to help formulatea softer opinion of each other in the media of their re-spective countries. Welcoming the delegation, Mr.Imran Shaikh, Head of Marketing, JS Bank spoke onthe occasion to appreciate the efforts of the delega-tion to strengthen the existing ties between the coun-tries. Kalim ur Rahman - CEO, JS Bank stated thatthis is a important milestone in the history betweenUnited States of America and Pakistan to pave theway to a better understanding of each other’s cultureand complexities involved to improve the existing re-lationship. Pakistan has immense potential and thereis a need to ensure that all the positive news shouldalso be highlighted in the right circles around theworld. Participants on both sides will have opportuni-ties to report on their experiences in each country,which will help to educate their audiences and dispelmyths and misperceptions that people carry in eachcountry about residents of the other. PR

Engro Foods continues stellar

growth, announces Rs 2,595m profit

KARACHI: The Board of Directors of Engro FoodsLimited has announced an extraordinarily brilliantperformance and a profit after tax of Rs.2,595 millionfor the year ended December 31, 2012 as compared toRs 891 million in 2011. Engro Foods’ revenue for2012 recorded another year with continuous stellargrowth of 35% and stood at Rs. 40.17 billion as com-pared to Rs. 29.86 billion in the 2011. The Companyalso announced an EPS of Rs. 3.43 & Rs. 3.40 (basic& diluted respectively) for the year 2012, growth of181% vs 2011. Focused investment and growth, diver-sification of the existing product portfolio and effec-tive product mix management along with a strongemphasis on operational excellence through the vari-ous business segments remained the key elements inthe achievements of our results in 2012. The Com-pany continued its aggressive business strategy ofgrowth and diversification and achieved volumegrowth of 25% in 2012. Growth in the ambient UHTmilk segment was driven by tea creamers whereTarang maintained its leadership While Dairy Omungalso contributed to the growth. PR

Qatar prepares for opening of

Hamad Int’l Airport in Doha on Apr 1DOHAR: The State of Qatar is ready to welcome anew chapter in the country’s remarkable aviation in-dustry with preparations well underway for the April

1 first phase opening of the new Hamad InternationalAirport to be operated by national carrier Qatar Air-ways. Details of the soft launch opening were un-veiled to an audience of more than 100 airportofficials and airline executives in Doha today at anevent jointly organised by Qatar Airways, the HamadInternational Airport’s Operational Readiness andAirport Transition (ORAT) team and Qatar’s CivilAviation Authority (QCAA). QCAA Chairman H. E.Abdul Aziz Al Noiami, spelled out the plans for theairport’s readiness, in which Qatar Airways will play apivotal role. The first phase of the US$15.5 billionproject involves 12 international passenger airlinesbecoming the launch carriers of the new facility fromApril 1. These include low-cost airlines. Qatar Air-ways will move its entire operations to Hamad Inter-national Airport in the second half of the year. Untilrecently, the airport was known under the projectworking name New Doha International Airport(NDIA). Qatar Airways will work closely with the firstmovers to ensure a smooth transition of flights fromthe current Doha International Airport. With thephased approach, Doha will have a dual airport oper-ation until full operations begin at Hamad Interna-tional in the second half of 2013. PR

Emirates holds annual

awards ceremony

KARACHI: Emirates SkyCargo, the Cargo Divisionof Emirates Airline, one of the world’s fastest grow-ing airlines, recently held its annual award cere-mony to honour and recognise the most productivecargo agents in Pakistan at a gala event in Karachi.The airline presented awards to the country’s topten cargo agents in recognition of their performanceduring 2011-12, in the Cargo Agents Awards Cere-mony 2012. The agents were awarded for their out-standing performance throughout the year andcontribution to Emirates’ business. In December2012, Emirates SkyCargo took delivery of its sev-enth Boeing 777F, increasing its dedicated freighterfleet to 10 aircraft. Scheduled freighters now oper-ate to 39 freighter destinations. PR

Pantene partners with

hair stylist Nina Lotia

KARACHI: Pantene, oneof the leading beautyshampoo brands in theworld, recently announcedits partnership withrenowned hair stylist NinaLotia. The announcementwas made at an exclusive

affair held at a local restaurant, amidst some of Pak-istan’s most renowned media personalities. NinaLotia, who has been a prominent name in the hair in-dustry for over 25 years has joined hands with Pan-tene Pakistan to promote the new Pantene Shampooand hair care lineup that has recently been launchedin Pakistan. For the first time in many years Pantenehas expanded its portfolio in Pakistan by launchingspecial hair therapy treatments including ‘Oil Replace-ment Hammam’ and ‘Oil Replacement Night. Sharingher views at the occasion, Nina Lotia, Pantene BrandAmbassador said, “As a hair stylist, I have immenseknowledge regarding products good for ones hair, andthose that are damaging to ones hair. After trying thenew Pantene products, I have become a true Pantenebeliever! It’s unfortunate that there is a lack of educa-tion about hair care, which is one of the main reasonsI chose to become a part of the Pantene team. Thiscampaign is very special to me because it is providingme with a platform through which I can reach out towomen across Pakistan and educate them on how touse Pantene products in a manner that will help themfind the best solution for their hair care problems.” PR

UMT achieves SAQS accreditation

LAHORE: It’s a great achievement for University ofManagement and Technology to become 3rd Universityin Pakistan with this unique distinction to get SAQS Ac-creditation (South Asian Quality Assurance System) byAMDISA (Association for Management Development inSouth Asia).This accreditation is for five years effectivefrom January 2013. SAQS has emerged as a systemwhich provides a quality assurance and accreditationframework based on regional and international experi-ences and perspectives. It uses a set of criteria developedfrom business and management schools of high na-tional and international standing. Its policy is deter-mined by a broad based SAQS Council. The process ismanaged by the SAQS Committee. The major inputs forthe quality assurance and accreditation process are gen-erated by the management school found eligible forSAQS, through its Self-Assessment Report. PR

CORPORATE CORNER

02FWBL to clinch Brand Award for second consecutive year KARACHI: First Women Bank Limited(FWBL) will clinch Brand of the Year Award(2011-2012) for the second consecutive yearat an impressive ceremony, also to begraced by Federal Finance Minister DrAbdul Hafiz Shaikh on Monday. FWBL hasbeen acknowledged for its quality trainingprograms focused on professional empow-erment of women bankers through in-housequality training as well as those arranged incollaboration with other organisations.“Our efforts had always been equally fo-cused to enhance professional capacities ofwomen bankers,” said a senior FWBL offi-cial. She said the previously clinched BrandAward of the Year was in acknowledgmentto FWBL’s contribution towards promotionof women banking in the country. APP

FPCCI urgesindustrialisation in SindhKARACHI: Infrastructure in Small andMedium Industries Estate and SITE areamust be improved, industries be set up andthe President of Pakistan should issue ordersfor industrialisation in interior Sindh saidFederation of Pakistan Chambers of Com-merce and Industry (FPCCI) Acting Presi-dent Iqbal Dawood Pakwalla. Pakwalla askedthe government to provide good infrastruc-ture for the development of industries inSindh to address the issue of growing unem-ployment. Owing to the poor law and ordersituation, factories are shutting down be-cause of which our youth is getting involvedin criminal activities, which is a dangeroustrend, he said. Pakwalla said that the infra-structure in Small and Medium IndustriesEstate and SITE area in Sukkur, Larkana andNawabshah should be improved. He said inthe Sukkur SITE area, 100 acres of land hadbeen allocated as Export Processing Zonewhich should be fast-tracked. NNI

LAHORE

STAFF REPORT

Aseminar on Brand Power wasarranged by the LCCI StandingCommittee on Education onThursday. LCCI Senior Vice Pres-ident Irfan Iqbal Sheikh was the

chief guest while Vice President Mian AbuzarShad, Convener Standing Committee on Educa-tion Abrar Ahmad, Deputy Registrar of Copy-rights Imtiaz Ali, co-Convener of the LCCIStanding Committee on Education UmerSaleem, Muneeb Dilshad, Beenish Pervaiz,Fauad Bajwa and Rana Sajjad also spoke on theoccasion. The main objective of the seminar wasto educate the participants about the importanceof creating a unique brand identity for Pakistaniproducts.

The speakers shed light on various aspects ofbrand development. They were of the view thata little attention toward this area could do mira-cles as Pakistani merchandise was top of the

notch in terms of quality.There was a consensus that a brand is essen-

tially a promise of value to customers. Buildinga strong brand leads to awareness and recogni-tion in the product or service provided, which inturn generates increased sales.

They said branding is especially importantin export business as it is the one consistentmessage every potential customer looks at andproduct branding can make all the difference be-tween failure and success.

Therefore, Pakistani entrepreneurs shouldconcentrate on branding as it not only trans-forms an ordinary product into a special one butalso removes all ambiguities from the minds ofbuyers. A huge amount of foreign exchangecould be earned by focusing on branding of Pak-istani products, the speakers said.

LCCI Senior Vice President said Pakistanhad all resources in abundance and quality-wiseit could match other countries of the world butit failed to get its due share in the world becauseof poor branding.

‘Pakistani products must focuson branding in int’l market’

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