According to a notification issued by the finance ministry, the government imposed a Rs 10 per litre petroleum levy on petrol and Rs 5 each on high-speed diesel, kerosene and light diesel oil.
The International Monetary Fund has asked Pakistan to set up an anti-corruption task force to review all the existing laws that were aimed at curbing graft in the government departments.
The revival of the facility will immediately provide access to USD 1 billion, which Pakistan badly needs to buttress its dwindling foreign exchange reserves.
The Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine conflict have pushed debt levels for many countries to alarming levels.
According to estimates, the country’s economy is likely to grow at 8.2 per cent in 2022-23, down 0.8 per percentage points.
The size of the loan would be increased from the existing $6 billion to $8 billion -- a net addition of $2 billion, a senior government functionary requesting anonymity said.
IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva made the remarks at a joint news conference with Nadia Calviño, Chair, the International Monetary and Finance Committee of the IMF.
The IMF, early this week, projected a “fairly robust” growth of 8.2 per cent for India in 2022, making it the fastest-growing major economy in the world, almost twice faster than China’s 4.4 per cent.
Noting that financial markets and financial institutions are key to growth and economic development, Adrian said addressing the remaining regulatory concerns in the banking system and in the non-bank system is also very important.
The global growth has been projected at 3.6 per cent in 2022, down from 6.1 per cent in 2021, the IMF said in its annual World Economic Outlook report released here.
Central banks are raising interest rates to counter rising prices, a move that could choke off economic growth. By driving up prices of oil, natural gas, and other commodities, the Russia-Ukraine war has made the task of fighting inflation while preserving the economic recovery even trickier.
In her first public appearance before the Atlantic Council think-tank, the finance minister told a select group of Washington audience about how the people together with the Indian government successfully faced the challenge posed by COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdowns.
Ms Georgieva also congratulated India on its successful vaccination programme to control the spread of COVID-19.
Sitharaman highlighted India's performance in the digital world and the government's efforts to build the digital infrastructure framework over the last decade.
The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), during a media round table on Thursday on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, told a select group of reporters that the most significant channel of impact on the Indian economy is energy prices.
“We have been projecting a quite robust growth for India. Yes, there is a small downgrade versus our previous projection from 9.5 pc to 9 pc for 2022. But then we also have a small upgrade for 2023, because we think that we'll see stable growth not very different from (those projected by) the (Union) Minister of Finance,” Georgieva said
On Thursday, India announced a USD 900 million loan to Sri Lanka to build up its depleted foreign reserves and for food imports, amid a shortage of almost all essential commodities in the island nation. The Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay met the Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal and “expressed India’s strong support to Sri Lanka in the wake of RBI extending over USD 900 million facilities over the last week”.
The meeting comes days after the IMF announced that she is being promoted as its First Deputy Managing Director.
Gopinath would replace Geoffrey Okamoto who plans to leave the Fund early next year.
"We welcome India's announcement at the COP26 of new targets to increase reliance on renewables and reduce the carbon intensity of its economy, including to adopt net zero target by 2070," Gerry Rice, Director, Communication Dept, IMF, said.
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