ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s financial sector showed a steady performance and expanded 27 percent in 2023 as inflation began falling, economic growth recovered and currency exchange rate stabilized in the country, the Pakistani central bank said on Friday.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) stated this in its annual Financial Stability Review (FSR) for 2023, presenting performance and risk assessment of various segments of the financial sector including banks, microfinance banks (MFBs), non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs), insurance, financial markets and financial market infrastructures (FMIs). It assessed financial soundness of major user of credit and financial services, viz. the non-financial corporate sector.
The review highlighted that macroeconomic environment remained challenging amid rising inflation, weak foreign exchange inflows and pressures on external account and local currency, and low business confidence particularly in the first half of 2023. However, policy measures and regulatory interventions that were taken to address growing imbalances, coupled with a $3 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), helped improve the macroeconomic conditions in the second half.
“In this backdrop, the financial sector exhibited strong growth and performance and maintained its financial soundness and operational resilience. The asset base of the financial sector expanded by 27.0 percent in CY2023, which was mainly driven by the banking sector,” the SBP said.
While volatility in financial markets remained high, the financial sector particularly the banking sector remained resilient and grew by 29.5 percent. The growth in assets was primarily driven by investments in government securities while private sector advances contracted in the backdrop of stressed macro-financial conditions, according to the review.
The non-bank financial sector also showed healthy performance, with the asset base of Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) and Non-Bank Financial Institutions (NBFIs) observing strong expansion. The insurance sector witnessed growth in assets and gross premium despite slowdown in economic activity.
“The overall position of the non-financial corporate sector was encouraging as solvency indicators and repayment capacity remained satisfactory,” the SBP said. “Large borrowers of banking sector exhibited stable repayment capacity and there were no significant delinquencies during the year under review.”
E-banking transactions continued to drive growth in retail payments in 2023 and the central bank moved to implement the third phase of ‘Raast’ payment system’s person-to-merchant (P2M) mode to facilitate digital payment acceptance for merchants and businesses.
“Going forward, overall risks to financial stability appear to be manageable due to anticipated moderation of macroeconomic stress and strong buffers and risk management capabilities of the banking sector,” the bank added.
Pakistan financial sector showed steady performance, expanded 27 percent in 2023 — central bank
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Pakistan financial sector showed steady performance, expanded 27 percent in 2023 — central bank
- The State Bank of Pakistan presented performance, risk assessment of various segments of financial sector in its annual review
- It notes policy measures and regulatory interventions, coupled with $3 billion IMF bailout, helped improve macroeconomic conditions
Wahab Riaz, Abdul Razzaq sacked from Pakistan cricket’s selection committee after World Cup debacle
- The men’s national cricket team disappointed fans across the world after group stage exit from T20 World Cup
- PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has been consulting coaches, former players to improve the team’s performance
KARACHI: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Wednesday announced its decision to sack former pacers Wahab Riaz and Abdul Razzaq from the selection committee following the national team’s group stage exit from the T20 World Cup, disappointing fans across the world.
Pakistan crashed out of the tournament, co-hosted by the United States and West Indies, after losing two crucial matches: one against the amateur USA team and another in a narrow defeat to India despite being in a strong position to win.
In response to the debacle, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has been holding meetings with coaches and former Pakistani cricket players amid mounting pressure to improve the team’s performance and address the issues that led to their early exit.
“The Pakistan Cricket Board today confirmed that it has notified Abdul Razzaq and Wahab Riaz that their services will no longer be required in the national selection committee setup,” the PCB said in a brief statement. “Abdul Razzaq was a member of the men’s and women’s selection committee, while Wahab was a member of the men’s selection committee.”
“The PCB will provide further updates on the selection committee’s composition in due course,” it continued.
The men’s national cricket team has faced a disappointing run since the Asia Cup last year, revealing significant gaps in their approach and consistency.
Internal divisions have been cited as a major issue, for which the PCB itself has faced criticism.
The PCB’s handling of leadership changes and team management decisions has also come under scrutiny, with many arguing that these factors contributed to the squad’s overall decline in performance.
Body of missing Japanese climber retrieved from mountain in northern Pakistan
- Hiroshi Onishi, 64, died after falling into a crevasse while descending the 7,027-meter Golden Peak
- Six volunteers retrieved his body after bad weather prevented helicopters from flying over the peak
PESHAWAR: A group of Pakistani volunteers found the body of a Japanese climber who died while trying to descend from one of the highest mountains in the country, officials said Tuesday.
The body of 64-year-old Hiroshi Onishi was brought down the previous day from the 7,027-meter (23,054 feet) Spantik Peak — also known as Golden Peak — where he died, a local police chief Mohammad Hanif told The Associated Press by phone.
He was the third Japanese climber to die in Pakistan in less than a month.
Onishi was coming down from the mountain with other Japanese climbers after successfully reaching the summit when he slipped and fell into a crevasse and died, police said.
The body of Onishi was being sent to Islamabad by an ambulance, according to Javed Ali Munwa, a local official told the AP. His family is expected to reach Pakistan later this week.
A six-member team of volunteers led by a Pakistani mountaineer Abbas Ali undertook the risky mission to retrieve the body after bad weather prevented helicopters from flying to the Spantik, Munwa said. He added that it took 6 days of arduous work to find and bring the body down.
Hiroshi’s death came after two other Japanese climbers, Atsushi Taguchi and Ryuseki Hiraoka, died while trying to scale the same mountain. They went missing on June 13, and Hiraoka’s body was found two days later after that incident.
His colleague was presumed dead after an unsuccessful weeklong search. Both had fallen into a deep crevasse.
Golden Peak is known for its distinct golden hue at sunrise and sunset, making it a popular destination for mountaineers.
Every year, hundreds of climbers try to scale mountains in northern Pakistan, including K2 and Nanga Parbat, and several die.
US urges journalist safety after Kenyan court rules Pakistani anchor’s killing unlawful
- Arshad Sharif was fatally shot by the Kenyan police in 2022 after he went into exile due to sedition charges against him
- Kenyan court asked authorities to launch criminal proceedings against officers who shot him after examining evidence
ISLAMABAD: US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller emphasized the safety of journalists “around the world” on Tuesday after being asked about a recent verdict issued by a Kenyan court declaring the 2022 police killing of Pakistani anchor Arshad Sharif unlawful.
Sharif, who was widely viewed as critical of Pakistan’s powerful military and a staunch supporter of the jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, left the country in August 2022 after sedition cases were filed against him.
He was fatally shot by the Kenyan police nearly two months later while traveling to Nairobi in a vehicle. The law enforcement officials in the African state described the shooting as a result of “mistaken identity.”
However, the Kenyan court ordered the authorities to launch criminal proceedings against the officers who shot the Pakistani journalist after examining the evidence in the case, according to the lawyer representing Sharif’s widow.
“I’m not aware of this case, so I’m not going to comment in any way specifically on it at all,” Miller said when asked about the Kenyan court’s verdict during his media briefing in Washington.
“But, of course, we support the work of journalists around the world,” he continued. “And we think that it’s important that they be able to do that job – their job safely.”
Sharif’s widow, Javeria Siddique, together with the Kenya Union of Journalists and Kenya Correspondents Association, filed a complaint last year against top Kenyan officials over the “arbitrary and unlawful killing” and their “failure to investigate.”
After a total of three hearings, the court reserved its verdict on May 8, which was subsequently announced on Monday.
Protests erupt in Balochistan’s Turbat over power cuts as official blames Iran’s supply suspension
- Iran supplies 200-megawatt electricity to the coastal region, equally distributed between Gwardar and Kech
- Traders in Turbat threaten to go on a shutter-down strike, saying power cuts have adversely impacted business
QUETTA: Residents of Pakistan’s southwestern Makran coastal region decided to camp in Balochistan’s Turbat city on Tuesday to protest against prolonged power outages amid scorching heat as the Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO) said the situation was caused by Iran’s decision to suspend electricity supply to the area.
Pakistan shares a 959-kilometer frontier with Iran that begins at the Koh-i-Malik Salih Mountain and ends at Gwadar Bay in the Gulf of Oman. Iran and Pakistan signed an agreement in 2003 under which Iran daily supplies 35 megawatts of electricity to Balochistan’s coastal belt, including Gwadar, which is the heart of the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Pakistan’s top economic decision-making body, ECNEC, announced its plan in May 2019 to connect Makran Division with the national grid, but the border districts of Gwadar and Kech continue to receive power from Iran’s main transmission line.
Speaking to Arab News over the phone from Turbat in Kech district, the organizers of the protest said the power cuts – also called loadshedding in Pakistan – had disrupted life amid intense heat.
“Most of the power feeders in Kech have run out of electricity, resulting in 14 hours of loadshedding despite a soaring temperature of about 50°C [122°F],” Zarif Baloch, deputy convener of the All Parties Association of District Kech, informed.
He said there was a total power outage in Turbat as he spoke over the phone.
“When we contacted QESCO officials, they said Iran had suspended the power supply which was causing the situation in the district,” he continued. “We have been suffering from such a situation since the last month, but we have now called a shutter-down strike in Turbat from Thursday if the power supply is not restored.”
Muhammad Afzal Baloch, the QESCO spokesperson, told Arab News Pakistan had been receiving 200 megawatts of electricity from Iran, half of was supplied to Gwadar and half to Kech district.
“The power supply was suspended from Iran due to their own needs but it was restored in Makran Division on Monday night,” he said. “Although Iran has been providing 200 megawatts of electricity to our bordering districts, we consume the Iranian electricity as per our need.”
Last year in May, the top leaders of the two countries inaugurated the first border market on their frontier to strengthen trade relations. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Iran’s former president Ebrahim Raisi agreed to initiate 100 megawatts of additional electricity to Balochistan’s bordering districts from the Polan-Gabd transmission line.
Ishaq Roshan Dashti, president of the traders’ association in Kech district who runs his own clothing business in Turbat, said the prolonged power cuts were causing significant hardships for his fellow community members.
“We are very much disturbed during the peak summer months of June and July,” he told Arab News. “The situation has led to a 50 percent decrease in business activities in the area.”
Shahzad Baloch, who runs an ice factory, agreed with him.
“Every year, we face such electricity breakdowns in Makran during these months and the country’s power division blames Iran,” he said. “We cannot meet the regular demand for ice and have started using generators. But this has increased the price of each ice block by 35 percent compared to the previous year.”
Residents of Gwadar and Pasni also protested against unplanned power outages on Monday and blocked the country’s key coastal highway connecting Balochistan with Pakistan’s southeastern port city of Karachi.
However, they ended the protests after the authorities assured them that the power supply would be restored within a few hours.
Young student’s motorbike commute aims to encourage mobility for Peshawar women
- Huma Hashmat has been riding a motorcycle since 2020, aims to improve women’s mobility in the conservative region
- Social norms, safety concerns limit women’s mobility across Pakistan but things worse in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
PESHAWAR: Huma Hashmat fixed her dupatta and kick-started the Honda Deluxe motorbike early one morning this month and then sped off through the bustling streets of Peshawar, a conservative city in northwestern Pakistan where women’s mobility is considerably restricted.
While it’s common to see women catching public transportation or riding in private vehicles with their families, a woman driving a motorbike is a rare sight in Peshawar. In fact, Hashmat, 20, is the only woman biker in the city, riding daily since 2020 from her house in Academy Town to the University of Peshawar where she is pursuing a degree in art and design.
In a city where a woman’s bicycle rally was canceled in 2019 due to threats from religious forces, Hashmat has a quest: to inspire other women and show them that greater mobility can foster autonomy.
Social norms and safety concerns limit women’s mobility across Pakistan, where general commuting and travel activity is estimated to be 80 percent dominated by men, according to a 2016 London School of Economics study on gender inequality in transportation. Things are even worse in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, along the Afghan border, inhabited by deeply conservative, ethnic Pashtuns.
“I want to tell the girls that they can do nothing while sitting at home, until they begin to take a stand for themselves,” Hashmat told Arab News in an interview earlier this month. “The way I take care of all my chores independently, I want them to see me and get motivated, not necessarily by riding motorbikes, but they should learn this from me to do things on their own.”
Hashmat has three brothers and her father owns a small business and supported her decision to study arts instead of pushing her toward traditional fields like education or medicine which are deemed more suitable for women.
“My father allowed me [to ride the bike],” she said. “He supports me, just as my brothers who say, ‘If Baba says nothing, you are allowed from our side too’.”
To motivate other girls, Hashmat uploads her videos on TikTok.
“I have heard from a lot of women that Peshawar is a city where they cannot roam around freely ... I upload the videos to show them that I go to every corner of Peshawar on my bike, and nothing has happened to me, nor has anyone said anything to me,” Hashmat said. “This means that Peshawar city is safe in this regard.”
Speaking to Arab News, her father, Hashmat Ali, said he had wanted to raise his daughter like his sons.
“I have permitted her to do whatever she wants,” he said. “The only thing I stress upon is for her to cover herself since it is a society where women have to do it.”
Noor Muhammad, a senior official at Peshawar’s Social Welfare Department, said Hashmat was a role model for others.
“Everyone is free, whether a man or a woman, to be on the road,” he said. “In fact, we empower and encourage women to travel on the road safely.”
However, he stressed the importance of all drivers following rules and regulations and obtaining a license before venturing out.
Hashmat’s friends also described her as “courageous,” and one classmate, Muskan Gul, said she was one of a kind.
“Many people in our society do not accept [such things] ... Huma’s decision to ride a bike is indeed an act of bravery.”
