PTEA laments state of affairs

Shortage of energy resulting in industry decline, say exporters.

FAISALABAD: Lack of basic working capital and energy crisis have been a concern for exporters and a major setback to the textile industry as a whole, according to the Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA). Billions of rupees stuck in tax refunds is another reason for the stagnant growth.

PTEA Chairman Sohail Pasha and Vice Chairman Rizwan Riaz Sehgal on Thursday said a large number of textile exporters are stuck in refund regimes, creating a severe financial crunch. These amounts, if released, will free up capital to be invested in expanding businesses, which in turn will help Pakistan’s exports grow. With a 1.5% global market share in textile, there is an opportunity to progress.

They added that the textile industry has aimed to get maximum benefits from the GSP Plus scheme and has the ability to hit the $15-billion export target in the current fiscal year, but it seems that the desired results would be missed in the absence of adequate funds.

PTEA chief Sohail Pasha said the industry has taken a severe blow at a time when many of the leading players had invested large amounts of money in upgrading infrastructure and extending capacities. However, this plan to meet the growing demand has been hampered by a severe shortage of energy.

Vice chairman Rizwan Riaz demanded that the government should bail out the textile industry from the crisis by removing hurdles and providing necessary incentives to increase exports.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 3^rd, 2014.

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