Global consortium plans to pour billions into Pakistan

[nahtanbob]

Looks to be the symbol for Euros.
At current exchange rate 1 Euro = $1.09

so 50 Billion Euros would be approx. $54-55 Billion

yeah that is a huge amount

 

[Bilal Khan (Quwa)]

While I welcome this news with guarded scepticism on its veracity, the sectors of investment mentioned aren't exactly the kind we want large scale investment in. Housing and construction while they may be large sectors that employ quite a few, but ultimately they do not take your economy very far in terms of exports and foreign exchange earnings. If this same $50-60b investment was in manufacturing I would be over the moon.

Moreover, not just any manufacturing. It needs to be in auto-manufacturing (cars and parts), consumer electronics (circuit board manufacturing), pharmaceuticals, etc. These are the biggest markets, so even a tiny share could have a huge economic impact in terms of jobs, saving foreign currency, etc. Of course, we would want to use these gains to advance our R&D and enter more complex/difficult areas (like what China did).

Sadly, knowing us Pakistanis, I feel we'll slip into blindly chanting "GIC, GIC, GIC" like "CPEC, CPEC, CPEC" without understanding the economics or holding decision-makers accountable for shifty and poor deals.

 

[Kamikaze Pilot]

First acquaint the readers with what is GIC. There is not even a Wikipedia entry on it. Not many people have heard of it.

- PRTP GWD

 

[ziaulislam]

Moreover, not just any manufacturing. It needs to be in auto-manufacturing (cars and parts), consumer electronics (circuit board manufacturing), pharmaceuticals, etc. These are the biggest markets, so even a tiny share could have a huge economic impact in terms of jobs, saving foreign currency, etc. Of course, we would want to use these gains to advance our R&D and enter more complex/difficult areas (like what China did).

Sadly, knowing us Pakistanis, I feel we'll slip into blindly chanting "GIC, GIC, GIC" like "CPEC, CPEC, CPEC" without understanding the economics or holding decision-makers accountable for shifty and poor deals.

CPEC is nothing but chinese investment in power and transport..
If we dont move towards manufacturing(which will hurt alot of poltical families with import buisness) it will be another debt trap

I said this 5 years ago when every one was jumping on CPEC

 

[Bilal Khan (Quwa)]

CPEC is nothing but chinese investment in power and transport..
If we dont move towards manufacturing(which will hurt alot of poltical families with import buisness) it will be another debt trap

I said this 5 years ago when every one was jumping on CPEC

It's weird these same political families can't bother to get into export-oriented businesses. It's one thing to be greedy or even corrupt, but this total lack of vision and ambition is something else.

 

[PAKISTANFOREVER]

CPEC is nothing but chinese investment in power and transport..
If we dont move towards manufacturing(which will hurt alot of poltical families with import buisness) it will be another debt trap

I said this 5 years ago when every one was jumping on CPEC

That is the initial part of CPEC. You can't have manufacturing if you don't have uninterrupted power and good transportation. Phase 3 of CPEC onwards is about establishing industrialisation in Pakistan. CPEC is not a 5-10 year plan. It is a program that will probably last over 50 years.

 

[Shah Khalid]

A feasibility study for petrochemical complex is already complete perhaps GIC can start with that

 

[Meengla]

However, the conundrum for Pakistan is the state of the economy, virtual junk rating of its debt, precarious situation of foreign currency reserves, uncertain political will and ongoing bailout packages.

Thank God at least they are not including 'security situation' in the list! That had been the norm for many years until recently when it came to Pakistan.

The rest in the list are not out of the ordinary for many countries in the world and there must be 'models' to factor in those issues.

 

[FuturePAF]

With central banks printing money and putting more debt on the books, the value of the dollar will slide compared to the price of gold.

If the Gold reserves at Reko-Dig we’re estimated to be worth $500 billion last year, they may soon be worth over a $1 trillion if not more in the next few years

Pakistan needs to be very careful whom it lets invest in this gold mine and what terms and conditions it puts as part of any deal, no matter who the investor is. Further this would be the best time to require some of the gold mined to go directly into the Central Bank of Pakistan’s vaults. It will be a reliable way to stabilize our currency and may help get foreign loans at lower interest rates.

we need to be very focused on the terms of these deals.

 

[Aspen]

I don't trust a word from this GIC especially if it's European/American since half the time west never follows though on these investments

Also, I cannot find any recent news on this which means that the article itself could basically be fake or unverified

I'll believe it when I see it