The rising prices of iron and steel and inflated rates of energy have caused a substantial drop in the sales of products, including agricultural implements, in Faisalabad, putting the manufacturers in a tight corner, reports WealthPK. Faisalabad, considered an industrial city, has multiple workshops producing various sorts of iron and steel products. However, the manufacturers are in a tailspin, as consumers are finding it hard to afford expensive products. Talking to WealthPK, Amjad, an agricultural machinery manufacturer who plies his trade on Samundri Road, said a couple of years ago, farmers used to place orders for new implements like fodder, harvester, thresher and other tools. However, now they request renting the required implements. “No remedial measures are in sight for the farmers and the manufacturers of agricultural implements,” he said, adding that the government should focus on this sector which was playing an important role in the agriculture sector. “We are also bearing the brunt of rising prices of iron and steel and energy, leaving no room for us to survive,” he added.

Talking to WealthPK, Katab Hussain, who owns a plant and also supplies agricultural implements, said a customer placed an order for the main gates of his house and steel shed; however, the order was cancelled due to the high rates of steel. He said construction and steel sector served as the base to gauge the health of an economy. When construction and steel business moves, every business makes progress; but these days both businesses are in a deep trouble due to the surging prices of raw material, gas and electricity, he explained. “The traders increase the rates of material whenever the government increases the prices of fuel, but they do not reduce the rates in case of relief by the government,” he added. Allah Ditta Chaudhry, a building contractor having an experience of forty years under his belt, has been jobless for a couple of weeks due to the surging prices of steel and cement. Talking to WealthPK, he said the owner of a plaza settled everything with him and he was about to start the project when he was stopped.

The reason was the recent increase in steel prices. When Chaudhry tried to convince him that the rates would further go up, he did not agree. Zakar Hussain, a steel furniture dealer, told WealthPK that erratic prices of steel were hitting their business hard due to which they had to compromise their profits. He said a couple of weeks ago, steel price jumped from Rs265 to Rs297 per kilogram following a surge in fuel prices and appreciation in the US dollar against the rupee. The prices declined to Rs235 per kilogram when the government controlled the dollar rate. Now the dollar rate is low but the steel prices are surging due to the people who are dominating the market. He said the big guns were not ready to pass the relief of decline in the dollar price on to the public. However, he said the good thing was that they were not creating fake shortages of steel and iron.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)