Miftah Ismail likely to be appointed as Finance Minister

April 14, 2022 (MLN): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif will likely name Miftah Ismail, a former finance minister, ahead of crucial talks with the International Monetary Fund, along with the rest of the cabinet within a day, as Bloomberg reported.

Miftah Ismail will be among the officials responsible for negotiating with the IMF to resume a program that went into jeopardy after former Prime Minister Imran Khan unexpectedly decreased energy prices, despite an agreement with the lender for the opposite.

The government’s economic team will also have to deal with Asia’s second-fastest inflation and falling foreign exchange reserves that have dropped to levels that can fund just a couple of months of imports. The nation’s central bank has already increased interest rates by the most since 1996 to help ease the crisis, it noted.

In an interview with Bloomberg News on Tuesday,  he said that Pakistan is planning to work with the IMF to stabilize the economy. The government's priority is to reduce the fiscal deficit and address the challenge of declining foreign exchange reserves that will support the rupee.

However, he declined to comment on his potential appointment, while ruling party spokeswoman Marriyum Aurangzeb and the Prime Minister’s Office didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The government, formed through an alliance of multiple political parties, is still in discussions to distribute portfolios and a final decision is yet to be made, it said.

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