Pak Suzuki extends plant shutdown due to low inventory

Pak Suzuki Motor Company Ltd (PSMCL) has extended its plant shutdown to September 8-9 due to low inventory supply, it said in a Pakistan Stock Exchange filing on Friday.

However, its motorcycle plant will continue to operate.

In the filing, the company said the State Bank of Pakistan’s condition requiring prior approval for the import of specific HS codes, including completely knocked down (CKD) kits, had “adversely impacted clearance of import consignment which resultantly affected inventory levels”.

Consequently, the company decided to extend its automobile plant shutdown to Sept 8-9, it said.

Last month, the company had kept its plant shut from Aug 18-19, Aug 22-26 and Aug 29-31.

The company recently resumed the booking of a few four wheelers models after suspending it from July 1 onwards.

The government had imposed a ban on the import of non-essential and luxury items under an “emergency economic plan” in May. The ban was subsequently lifted in August but Finance Minister Miftah Ismail had said the automobile sector, among others, would only be allowed to import half of what it used to earlier for some time.