State Bank’s Interest Rate Decision Sparks Concern Among Business Leaders

Karachi: Faisal Moiz Khan, President of the North Karachi Association of Trade and Industry (NKATI), has expressed concern over the State Bank of Pakistan’s decision to maintain the interest rate at 11%, stating that it contradicts Prime Minister Mian Shehbaz Sharif’s assurances to the business community of reducing the rate to single digits.

Khan emphasized that global economic indicators were increasingly favorable for Pakistan, making the unchanged rate a hindrance to trade and industrial growth. He noted that this decision has left investors and industrialists disappointed.

The NKATI president highlighted that the failure to lower the interest rate adds further strain on the national economy. Khan argued that regional countries enjoy interest rates 5 to 6 percent lower than Pakistan’s, suggesting that a rate reduction could positively influence economic activities if the State Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee had taken the regional context into account.