The decision of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to lower the policy rate by 50 basis points to 10.50pc drew mixed reactions on Monday, with a foreign investors’ body welcoming it while the country’s wider business community criticised it as marginal and ineffective for boosting local production and exports.
The Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) viewed the rate cut as a prudent measure. “The State Bank has taken a cautious and measured step to ease financing conditions,” OCCI’s Secretary General and Chief Executive Abdul Aleem said. However, local business leaders expressed immediate and deep disappointment, arguing the minor adjustment fails to address the severe challenges they face. “Such a token adjustment falls far short of what is urgently required to revive Pakistan’s fragile economy and restore business confidence,” Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) President Muhammad Rehan Hanif said.