Inflation has soared in Pakistan with a litre of unpacked milk now costing PKR 210, up from PKR 190 previously. The price of one kg of chicken has risen to PKR 700-780 from PKR 620-650 last week. Boneless meat is costing PKR 1,000-1,100
In yet another hike, Pakistan has raised the prices of petrol and diesel. The price of high-speed diesel has spiked to PKR 280 while petrol price rose to PKR 272 per litre from February 16
The global rating agency Fitch has cut Pakistan's sovereign credit rating by two notches to CCC-, which denotes a very high level of default risk
In a detailed note, the rating agency said the downgrade reflected a further sharp deterioration in Pakistan's external liquidity and funding conditions and the decline of forex reserves to critically low levels
Fitch also said that in its view default or debt restructuring was a real possibility for cash-strapped Pakistan. It said the conditions set out by IMF were difficult amid an economic slowdown and record-high inflation
The International Monetary Fund wants Pakistan to carry out some reforms like a reduction in subsidies on fuel and energy and raising taxes to handle revenue shortage. It wants the government to raise PKR 170 billion in extra revenue by July
Katrina Ell, a senior economist with Moody’s Analytics, has said that the IMF's bailout alone won't be enough to get the economy back on track. She said Pakistan's economy needs persistent and sound management
Left with no other options, Pakistan has come up with proposals to raise 170 billion rupees in extra revenue through taxes. As per the plan, sales tax will be increased by 1% to 18% while taxes on luxury items will go up to 25%
Pakistan is set to increase taxes on first-class and business-class air tickets, locally manufactured cigarettes, and sugary drinks. On air tickets, an excise duty of 20% of the airfare or PKR 50,000, whichever is higher, will be levied