ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders on Thursday said Brexit will reduce remittances and exports while improve foreign investment in Pakistan.
Volatile international currencies will make debt servicing easier for Pakistan which is under 70 billion dollar, said a press release here.
Some of 1.2 million Pakistanis living in the United Kingdom may opt to come back which will hit remittances as UK is the third largest source of it after Saudi Arabia and UAE, said Patron Islamabad Chamber of Small Traders Shahid Rasheed Butt.
He said that UK is the third largest investor in Pakistan after China and UAE and it will increase investment in our country following the Brexit.
He said that many leading economic powers will try their best to get benefit of the situation but it is expected that China will emerge as winner which will also benefit Pakistan.
Shahid Rasheed Butt said that Pakistan should take steps to counter the impact of dwindling remittances which provide good budgetary support.
Overseas remittances play a critical role in boosting forex reserve and balance trade deficit by 90 percent, therefore, steps must be taken to ensure its smooth flow, he said.
He said that many oil exporting countries are facing economic crisis but remittances continue to increase which should be a matter of concern.
Existing laws prohibit government agencies to ask about the source of remittances which help corrupt elite to clean their ill-gotten money, he noted.
Increasing remittances has nothing to do with the trust of people on the economic policies otherwise exports and investment would not have been dwindled to alarming level, he added.
Sliding oil prices have destabilised the budgets of many countries compelling them to cut development expenditures while expecting increased remittances from sliding economies is self-deception, he said.
