Latest news with #Budget2026
Business Recorder
3 hours ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
PCJCCI president expresses satisfaction over Economic Survey, federal budget
LAHORE: Nazir Hussain, President Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI), appreciated the government's launch of the Pakistan Economic Survey 2024–25 and Budget 2026, calling them strong indicators of Pakistan's commitment to economic stability, investment, and regional connectivity through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). He emphasized that CPEC was playing a transformative role in building infrastructure, boosting trade, and creating job opportunities, especially through key projects in road, port, energy, and urban development. He added that the completion of several major infrastructure projects under CPEC, including the Multan-Sukkur and Hakla-D I Khan motorways, and the operationalization of the New Gwadar International Airport was already improving logistics, reducing travel time, and opening new trade corridors. Brig Mansoor Saeed Sheikh (retd), Senior Vice President PCJCCI particularly praised the progress in Gwadar, where the Gwadar Port and Free Zone have seen over $250 million in investment from the China Overseas Ports Holding Company Limited (COPHCL), enabling operations in logistics, manufacturing, fisheries, and finance. With generous incentives like a 23-year tax holiday, full foreign ownership, and one-window facilitation, Gwadar is rapidly becoming a strategic commercial hub for the region. Zafar Iqbal, Vice President PCJCCI said that Budget 2026 had also allocated significant funding under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) for ongoing and new CPEC projects, including infrastructure development in Gwadar, land acquisition, and the second phase of the East Bay Expressway. He also highlighted achievements in social infrastructure, such as the completion of a 1.2 million-gallon-per-day desalination plant to address water scarcity in Gwadar, and progress in digital connectivity, including the completion of a cross-border optical fibre cable. Salahuddin Hanif, Secretary General further welcomed signs of macroeconomic stabilization, with inflation recorded at 4.6 percent and GDP growth at 2.7 percent in the outgoing fiscal year. These are positive signs for investor confidence. Chinese businesses are already showing renewed interest, and CPEC's next phase will focus on job creation, industrial development, and local empowerment. The PCJCCI reaffirmed its commitment to promoting bilateral trade, facilitating business partnerships, and supporting the government's development goals under CPEC and Budget 2026. 'CPEC is not just an economic corridor it's a symbol of long-term cooperation and shared prosperity. The foundation has been laid. Now it's time to build on it, together.' Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Agriland
6 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
Minister urged to retain tax relief for farmers
The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers' Association (ICSA) is urging the Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe to retain key tax relief for farmers ahead of Budget 2026. ICSA Rural Development chair Edmond Phelan has said that the retention of key tax reliefs for farmers is absolutely vital, particularly in the context of generational renewal and the need to provide greater certainty for family farms. 'These reliefs – such as the Young Trained Farmer stamp duty exemption, Agricultural Relief from Capital Acquisitions Tax [CAT], and Farm Consolidation Relief – are not just technical tax measures,' Phelan said. 'They are essential supports that underpin efforts to improve farm viability, encourage land mobility, and, crucially, to support young people to enter and remain in farming. 'There should be no disincentives to farm transfers,' he said. The ICSA was responding to comments made by Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe, who confirmed in response to a parliamentary question, reported by Agriland, that several farm-related tax relief schemes are currently under review ahead of Budget 2026. According to Minister Donohoe, a number of tax reliefs are due to 'sunset' at the end of 2025. The first scheme under review is the Accelerated Capital Allowance (income tax) for slurry storage. The second scheme the minister mentioned was the Young Trained Farmer (stamp duty) Relief. The Farm Consolidation (stamp duty) Relief is also under review and the minister also mentioned Revised CAT Agricultural Relief. Phelan said the looming expiry or 'sunset' of these schemes at the end of 2025 must be addressed with clarity and urgency. 'ICSA is calling on the Minister for Finance to commit to the long-term retention of these reliefs in Budget 2026,' the ICSA chair continued. 'Farmers need certainty to plan for succession, make investment decisions, and meet environmental obligations. The absence of a firm commitment to extend these measures risks creating unnecessary hesitation at a time when we should be incentivising action. 'The other targeted tax reliefs mentioned by Minister Donohoe – Farm Restructuring (CGT) Relief and the Accelerated Capital Allowance for slurry storage – are equally vital for improving both environmental performance and economic sustainability on farms,' he added. The farm group has said that all of these measures align with national goals around climate action, biodiversity, and generational renewal. It added that removing or weakening them would send the wrong message at a time when the sector is being asked to do more than ever.
Agriland
6 days ago
- Business
- Agriland
ICMSA: Farmers ‘on board' with climate change plans
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) president, Denis Drennan has said that despite massive challenges, Irish farmers are engaged in the effort to address climate change. Speaking at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) Agriculture and Climate Change conference, Drennan said that the results and data were now 'showing the fruits' of farmers' efforts. Drennan believes that farmers are committed and 'on board' with plans to mitigate climate change. However, he stressed that farmers needed reassurance that those plans still rested on 'the three pillars of sustainability', including economic, environmental, and social. The ICMSA president said: 'There are challenges ahead that will have to be faced, and even leaving aside the very significant and unfair anomalies in the accountancy framework used for measuring emissions, the most obvious challenge is the ongoing failure of government to step up and support farmers. 'It's this failure of the government to support its own policies and recommendations that is hampering even more encouraging results and data. 'Irish agriculture is leading the way globally in meeting the climate challenge and the ICMSA believes that farmers can, and will, do more if properly supported,' Drennan added. Climate change According to the ICMSA president, the government has to stop 'coming up with reasons for not taking action' on climate change. Drennan believes that Budget 2026 should be used to signal a 'more proactive approach'. He also called on the government to 'work with farmers to make progress' on Ireland's emission targets. Drennan said: 'Work with farmers to make more progress ,or ultimately pay the fines that will be levied, because Ireland falls short on the emissions targets that could have been hit if we'd had the support. 'Budget 2026 is where we'll see if the government understands that choice and has made a decision that is logical on both the environmental and financial fronts,' he added.
Business Recorder
05-06-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Better news
At its current pace, cement offtake this year is likely to end up roughly at the same level as last year. Domestic dispatches are estimated to have declined by around 6 percent, but total dispatches have been buoyed by a 24–25 percent rise in exports. Despite muted local demand, cement companies have remained largely profitable, thanks to strong domestic pricing and controlled coal costs. The upcoming budget, however, could bring even better news. After quietly dissolving former Prime Minister Imran Khan's flagship initiative—the Naya Pakistan Housing Development Authority (NAPHDA)—Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif now appears poised to introduce a housing finance subsidy, echoing Mera Pakistan Mera Ghar (MPMG) scheme in structure, but likely introduced with less fanfare. In its four years of operation, NAPHDA had planned 156,000 housing units, of which only about 58,000 were completed. Of these, 31,000 were financed through MPMG. Given the original target of 5 million homes, progress has been disappointing. It's worth noting, however, that many of the projects under NAPHDA were not initiated by the authority itself but were pre-existing schemes absorbed into its portfolio. The current administration does not appear keen on launching a massive, centrally managed housing initiative—which, considering NAPHDA's bureaucratic pitfalls and Pakistan's fiscal constraints is probably wise. Instead, the government is planning a modest, targeted mark-up subsidy for 200,000 homes. That's a small and manageable start. Banks already have mechanisms in place to assess mortgage applications, owing to their experience with MPMG. According to BR estimates—since the SBP did not disclose borrower figures—approximately 78,000 mortgages were issued between 2020 and 2022, tied to Rs100 billion in loan disbursements (read: 'Now you see it, now you don't'). With limited data, it's difficult to assess the full impact of the scheme. But if Sharif's plan delivers financing for 200,000 homes through the formal banking channel, it would be more than double of what the MPMG ever achieved. And double is better, right? One cannot possible say. The fact is, whether a subsidy scheme will be impactful and add valuable output to the housing market or not, is a question for another day or another political era.. We will have to wait for the Budget 2026 announcement to see the exact modalities of the subsidy—who the scheme will target, and how it will be executed. What's certain increase housing credit will spur demand for construction materials, and cement stands to gain the most which the industry will undoubtedly welcome.
Agriland
04-06-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Minister reveals agri schemes under ‘review' before Budget 2026
The Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe has outlined a number of schemes for farmers that the Department of Finance is reviewing in advance of Budget 2026. The minister was responding to a parliamentary question from Fianna Fáil TD, Peter 'Chap' Cleere. According to Minister Donohoe, a number of tax reliefs are due to 'sunset' at the end of 2025. The first scheme under review is the Accelerated Capital Allowance (income tax) for slurry storage. The scheme was announced in 2023 to allow for the accelerated capital allowance for slurry storage, and for the construction of slurry storage facilities in farms. 'The scheme allows for the capital expenditure on slurry storage buildings and associated equipment to be written off at a rate of 50% per annum over a period of two years, as opposed to the standard period of seven years in the case of farm buildings, and eight years in the case of plant and machinery,' Minister Donohoe explained. The scheme has been in place for three years for expenditure occurred from January 1, 2023 to December 21, 2025. Schemes The second scheme the minister mentioned was the Young Trained Farmer (stamp duty) Relief. It provides a full exemption on stamp duty, which is normally charged at 7.5% on the transfer of farmland, subject to certain conditions being met. The relief is available where farm holdings are consolidated by way of linked sales, purchases of land, and where land is transferred as a gift or by way of exchange. According to the minister, stamp duty at a reduced rate of 1% is applied to the excess of the value of the land acquired over the value of the land disposed of, where the acquisition and disposal take place within a 24-month period of each other. The scheme has been renewed for three-year periods on several occasions and is next due to 'sunset' on December 31, 2025. The Farm Consolidation (stamp duty) Relief is also under review. The purpose of the relief is to encourage the consolidation of farm holdings, to reduce farm fragmentation, and improve the operation and viability of farms. Minister Donohoe said: 'The relief is available where farm holdings are consolidated by way of linked sales and purchases of land and where land is transferred as a gift or by way of exchange. As with the Young Trained Farmer Relief, stamp duty at a reduced rate of 1% is applied. Minister Donohoe also highlighted the situation with the Farm Restructuring (CGT) Relief. He said: 'The purpose of farm restructuring relief is to encourage the consolidation of farm holdings, to reduce farm fragmentation and so improve the operation and viability of farms. 'The relief applies to a sale, purchase or exchange of agricultural land, where Teagasc has certified that a sale and purchase or an exchange of agricultural land was made for farm restructuring purposes,' Minister Donohoe added. The scheme has been renewed for three-year periods on several occasions and is next due to 'sunset' on December 31, 2025. Finally, the minister mentioned the Revised CAT Agricultural Relief. In this scheme, tax legislation provides relief from Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT) for gifts and inheritances of agricultural property, where conditions are met. The minister explained that where the relief applies, it operates by reducing for, CAT purposes, the market value of qualifying assets by 90%. Minister Donohoe said: 'To qualify for the relief, a few conditions must be met by the beneficiary. One condition is the active farmer test, which requires the beneficiary to farm the agricultural property or lease it to an individual who farms the agricultural property for at least six years following the gift or inheritance. ' (The) Finance Act 2024 extended the active farmer test to the disponer by way of a commencement order. 'Department officials are in the process of consulting with stakeholders with a view to ensuring there are no unintended consequences in commencing this section,' the minister added.
