May 01, 2007	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 13, 1428

KARACHI, April 30: Underlining the importance of a well-functioning financial sector for macro-economic stability, Prime Minster Shaukat Aziz on Monday said that banking sector in Pakistan had been transformed into vibrancy thereby driving the economic growth in the country.

“The next budget will be growth-oriented and ensure consistency and continuity of policies,” he said while talking to presidents/CEOs of banks at the Governor House here.

The banking sector in Pakistan, the prime minister said, stands out among the developing countries as an example of reforms and “we are proud of our achievements in this sector.”

Mr Aziz said that recapitalisation and restructuring of banks coupled with a clear policy and strong role of regulator has created opportunities, attracted significant investment and expedited this sector's growth.

Mr Aziz said capital markets are doing well and now they need to focus on private equity and venture capital.

He told the bankers that a number of foreign stock exchanges have shown interest to enter strategic partnerships with Pakistani capital markets.—APP