Foreign investors keen to invest in Pakistan: Dar

Washington: Finance Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar says foreign investors have shown a keen interest in various sectors of Pakistan with a focus on energy after an improvement in the fundamentals of national economy.

He was talking to representatives of Standard & Poor's and Moody's in Washington. The Minister said the government is taking concrete steps to fill the gap between power production and supply. He said various projects are underway to add power to the national grid.
The Finance Minister said Pakistan's economy is gaining momentum and has successfully completed first two quarterly reviews of International Monetary Fund (IMF). He specifically mentioned privatization of public sector entities through capital market and strategic sale transactions.
Ishaq Dar hoped that Pakistan's GDP is expected to increase from 3.6 to 7 percent and tax to GDP ratio from 8.5 to 13 percent. He said inflation is expected to be contained within a single digit of eight percent. Dar said the stock market has been gaining momentum during the last few months. The representatives of rating agencies appreciated the launch of Pakistan Sovereign Bonds in international market. They also lauded the recent improvement in the economic performance of the government.