Minister says 25% interest makes business unviable, seeks loan rescheduling
Running a business on borrowed money at 25% interest is "extremely difficult", Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan said in Lahore on Saturday, calling for loans to struggling industrialists to be rescheduled so they can resume operations.
Speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Khan said he had already put proposals to the prime minister to cut production costs and would carry the business community's recommendations to the government, pledging to resolve issues within his own authority. His remarks put a cabinet voice behind a complaint the chamber has pressed for months: that the cost of credit, not demand, is what is holding industry back.
Briefing members on the National Highway Authority's finances, Khan said the authority's annual revenue was around Rs66 billion when he took charge about two and a half years ago and has a target of Rs160 billion this year. Salaries, road repairs, routine maintenance and flood-damaged bridges and roads absorb much of that income, he said, with expenditure capped at about Rs50 billion and extra toll revenue earmarked for new projects.
He said Rs224 billion has been allocated for ongoing projects under the Public Sector Development Programme, most of it for national highways in Balochistan. A proposed Lahore-Islamabad route would cut the distance between the cities from about 380 kilometres to 280, serving Gujranwala, Gujrat, Lala Musa, Kharian and Jhelum, with extra toll revenue from the Faisalabad Motorway helping fund it, he said. The Sialkot Motorway is to go from four lanes to six, the Lahore-to-Khyber Motorway is targeted for completion in 2027, the Balochistan Expressway is expected next year and the Peshawar Northern Bypass next month.
Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told an LCCI Founders Group delegation that the government was working with the private sector to promote economic activity and create a business-friendly environment. The delegation raised the community's problems and proposals and called for cooperation on industry, investment and trade. Law and Justice Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, Information and Broadcasting Minister Attaullah Tarar and Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik also attended.
