Pressure On Rupee To End By Next Month, Hopes Miftah.

ISLAMABAD -- Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Sunday said that as finance minister inflation and growth has never been his top priorities, as his number one priority was to save the country from default.

While addressing a press conAference here, the Finance MinisAter hoped that pressure on PaAkistani rupee will ease in next couple of weeks.

'Even though I don't speculate on the currency market, howAever, I think that the true value of the rupee is far greater than this,' the minister added while responding to a query.

Citing the reason for the ruApee depreciations in recent weeks, Miftah said that during the months of June and July, the government had to make payAments worth billions which had brought rupee under pressure.

The pressure on the rupee would end by next month, he said. The government efforts to reduce imports would bear fruit and the value of the dollar vis-a-vis would fall and an improveAment would be seen within the next two weeks, he added. 'Let me be honest, no one knows the market. I can believe the funAdamentals are in my favour but speculation, sentiments also play a role,' Miftah said.

Meanwhile, after facing OppoAsition from traders related to the collection of taxes via electriciAty bills and requests from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Finance Minister Miftah Ismail announced certain meaAsures to satisfy small retailers.

'The Prime Minister has also called me and instructed me to

ensure that small traders are completely satisfied with the new tax law. This I shall do toAmorrow,' tweeted the minister.

The finance minister said that to address the concerns of the small retailers the government will 'exempt shops with bills of less than 150 units' from the tax. 'We will charge Rs3,000 even to those shopkeepers who are not registered with the FedAeral Board of Revenue (FBR). The tax paid will be full and fiAnal. No tax notice will be issued to shops nor will FBR officers visit their shops,' tweeted the finance minister.

About the current account deficit, the Finance Minister told the media that last year, there was a current account deficit of $17.5 billion and promised to control the deficit by reducing imports and increasing exports.

The minister said that the country's imports were $7.7 bilAlion during June which were reAduced to $5 billion during July. The country witnessed an imAport reduction of $2.7 billion in July as compared to the previAous month, he added. The minAister...