Chairman of National Business Group of FPCCI, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Monday said the economy is improving due to steps taken by the government.

Improvement in the industrial is limited to Large Scale Manufacturers (LSM); therefore, steps should be taken to boost medium and small industries, he said.

Mian Zahid Hussain said that a better economic situation has also increased imports which should be kept under control to keep the deficit within acceptable limits.

Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that LSM had shown a growth of 22.4 percent from July to March that includes construction, automotive, textile, pharmaceutical and food sector.

The economy is improving, but it is not creating enough jobs; therefore, SME development should be focused, he said, adding that a low-interest-rate environment and controlling pandemic is very important to ensure economic development.

Timely steps to combat the pandemic would have resulted in good numbers, but it was delayed, he observed.

Mian Zahid Hussain noted that petroleum products are the top imports that can be reduced by local exploration and refineries to reduce the import of finished products.

Machinery is the second-highest import item, but it is mainly focused on mobile imports. At the same time, small-scale manufacturing is confined to assembling cell phones while the neighbouring country is among the six top cellphone makers in the world.

The third-largest import is that of food group, edible oil worth 1.8 billion dollars was imported from July to March and tea worth 393 million dollars was imported despite bright potential in Pakistan.

He noted that wheat, sugar and cotton has also become importable items on which billions of dollars are being spent, which call for radical changes in agriculture policies.