ICCI Warns Govt of Grave Consequences for Negligence to Resolve Delay in LCs Opening

The failure of the government to address the issue of delay in Letters of Credit (LCs) opening on a priority basis would severely affect the production activities and further hurt the already struggling economy.

This was highlighted by Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) President Shakeel Munir during a recent address.

While calling upon the government to address the issue at the earliest, he stated that the business community is facing the problem of unnecessary delay in opening Letters of Credit (LCs) for the import of raw materials

Munir said that due to the delay in LCs opening, several industries including food, pharmaceuticals, steel, automobiles, telecom, home appliances and others are facing a shortage of raw materials for manufacturing activities. He mentioned that the government had earlier announced to lift the ban on imports. However, the business community is still facing a delay in opening LCs for various items including machinery and equipment.

While appealing to Finance Minister Miftah Ismail to take notice, he said that this ambiguous situation is creating a lot of concerns for the Small and Medium Enterprises and the Large Scale Manufacturing (LSM) industry.

Several other business leaders have also highlighted the dependence of Pakistan’s industrial sector on imported materials. They say that production activities are badly suffering due to the delay in the opening of LCs for imports and have urged the Ministry of Finance and the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to take urgent measures in this regard.

Source: Pro Pakistan