ISLAMABAD – Finance minister Miftah Ismail has rubbished the reports thatclaimed Pakistan had agreed to sell Roosevelt Hotel, owned by PakistanInternational Airline in New York, Qatar.

Roosevelt Hotel, one of the luxury place in New York, was originally openedin 1924 and it was taken by the national carrier on lease in 1979 and laterpurchased in 1999.

The speculations about selling of the iconic hotel surfaced when PrimeMinister Shehbaz Sharif visited Qatar earlier this week to hold talks withthe country’s leadership.

Following the visit, the office of Qatar’s emir said that the country isplanning to invest $3 billion in various sectors in Pakistan.

It was reported that funds will be invested through the Qatar InvestmentAuthority and now the officials are evaluating strategic investments inmain airports in South Asian country. The authority further planned toinvest in renewable energy, power, and hospitality sectors.

Miftah Ismail, while talking to media, said that no any discussion was heldabout Roosevelt Hotel and PIA during the meetings in Qatar.

However, he said that Qatar had expressed its interest in acquiringPakistani airports on lease, adding that the Gulf country was alsointerested in launching construction ventures at seaports of the SouthAsian country.