'IMF offers loans but wants tax reforms'

The country's finance minister has said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is ready to give more money to the country but it also demands that the government makes tax reforms.

"The prime minister {Shehbaz Sharif] is clear about the [tax] reforms being undertaken by us," Muhammad Aurangzeb said while addressing an event organized by the Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industries on Saturday.

Aurangzeb said it is repeatedly asked as to why we have to seek help from the IMF. "You know why we have to go to the IMF. So that the economy may continue to work," he added.

He acknowledged that the salaried class was bearing the brunt of taxes. He said the government wants the salaried individuals to submit a form. The minister stated that people belonging to seven different fields would be able to submit these forms online by November this year.

"We are digitalizing the entire [tax] system. You will see more improvements in the coming days."

Referring to a recent meeting of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi, he said the PM called on the CJ to request him to adjudicate tax related cases expeditiously.

He said due to pending tax cases, the country has to suffer an annual loss of Rs1 trillion every year.

He said he would like to talk about the policy rate and inflation as these have been challenging issues for some time. He noted that Interest rates are decreasing and auto financing has already seen a reduction.

"Recently, the prices of sugar, ghee, and other essential items have come down. Every year there is discussion about sugar prices but sugar prices will decrease this Ramazan. He stated that prices usually rise when there is a middleman involved.

Talking with reference to the federal government's rightsizing initiative, he said different ministries and departments are being merged to reduce expenditures.

"There 43 ministries, five to six of which are being merged with other ministries. We have already completed work for abolishing a ministry. We are doing all this to cut expenditures.

He said the government is making very difficult decisions at the moment, with a focus on three key areas. "We need to look ahead rather than dwell on the past. Right now, the government's entire focus is on how to move towards growth," he added.

The minister said he was in Saudi Arabia last week, where more than 30 finance ministers were present. "The discussion there was about shifting focus from global trade to regional trade," he said.

"I will not make any promises that I cannot fulfill. You are all my stakeholders, and I want everyone to move forward together. We must work together and look ahead not backward," he added.