Pakistan national carrier sale uncertain after low offer

Pakistan’s sale of national flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines Corp. has become uncertain after the maiden bid was below the minimum price of about $306m. Blue World City submitted a bid 8.5 times lower than the government’s expected price of 85b rupees, according to details provided by the Privatisation Commission in Islamabad. The government is going to review the outcome of the process, said the commission’s Secretary Usman Bajwa. Blue World, one of the six bidders shortlisted by Pakistan authorities, was the sole group to put in a final bid. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s cash-strapped government is trying to shore up the nation’s debt-ridden economy by selling loss-making state-owned enterprises that include the national airline, Roosevelt Hotel in New York and energy utility companies. The government has failed to privatize the airline in previous attempts because of protests by labor unions and political parties. <br/>