3.2pc growth target: BMP panel raises doubts over govt’s ability

The Businessmen Panel (BMP) of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry has raised serious doubts over the government’s ability to achieve the 3.2 per cent growth target projected under the International Monetary Fund programme, warning that worsening poverty indicators, declining investment, falling exports and record government borrowing present a far grimmer economic picture than official claims suggest. BMP Chairman and former FPCCI president Mian Anjum Nisar, in a strongly worded statement, said that although macroeconomic indicators such as inflation and the current account balance have shown relative stability, the real economy remains under severe strain. He said that stabilisation achieved through tight monetary policy and import compression cannot be mistaken for genuine economic recovery.