Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday directed the formation of a committee to resolve the issues faced by retail businesses and  assured his government’s all-out support for the purpose.  The prime minister, in a meeting with a delegation of the Pakistan Retail Business Council headed by Chairman Ziad Bashir, said that the retailers already under the tax net would not be burdened further rather efforts were being made to bring more retailers into the tax net, according to a PM Office press release. 

He told the delegation members that the steps were being taken to curb smuggling in the guise of used goods.  The prime minister urged the local industry to adopt innovation and modern technology to enhance exports and compete in the international market.  He said that besides introducing reforms in the Federal Board of Revenue, the government was also taking measures to promote a cashless economy.  The members of the delegation lauded the efforts by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his team for economic stability.

They viewed that the significant reduction in inflation and policy rate was leading to an increased consumption and production of goods.  The delegation members expressed the hope that the measures being taken by the government would further reduce the inflation rate and that the operational industry was begetting new employment opportunities.  They said that the government’s reformative measures would have far-reaching positive impacts on the economy and bringing more retailers into the tax net would increase revenue. 

They also acknowledged the government’s efforts to resolve the issues faced by the retailers already in the tax net.  Besides CEO of Service Sales Corporation and CEO of Beechtree Shahryar Bakhsh, the federal cabinet members Ahsan Iqbal, Jam Kamal Khan, Ahad Khan Cheema, Muhammad Aurangzeb, Rana Tanveer Hussain, Ali Pervaiz Malik and relevant senior officers attended the meeting.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)