ISLAMABAD, April 26: The government has delayed the overseas sale of shares in National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) until after June, a senior government adviser said on Thursday.

The government had previously said that it would offload a stake in the state-run bank by issuing global depositary receipts (GDR) before the 2006/07 fiscal year ends on June 30.

“Our target was to get it done by end-June this year, but this may slip a little bit,” Salman Shah, adviser on finance to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, told Reuters.

Asked about any new deadline, Shah said: “In this calendar year, definitely.” The government has yet to announce the size of the stake it plans to sell.

NBP is the country's second largest listed firm, with a market capitalisation of $3.32 billion. It reported a net profit of Rs17.22 billion in 2006.

Part of the government’s roughly 45 per cent stake of United Bank Ltd. (UBL) will also be offered in a deal expected to be completed by the end of June and which market sources say will be worth $200 million to $300 million.

Also on the government’s list of planned GDR issues are the unlisted Habib Bank Ltd. and Kot Addu Power Co. Ltd.—Reuters