World acknowledges Pakistan’s improving economy: Aurangzeb 

ISLAMABAD: Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has said Pakistan’s economic trajectory is drawing attention globally, with international stakeholders taking note of the country’s improving financial indicators. 

In a statement, Aurangzeb said Pakistan is making steady progress towards macroeconomic stability, aided in part by a recent and substantial reduction in the central bank’s policy rate, a move he said has positively influenced economic activity. 

He pointed to ongoing reforms in the energy sector and efforts to digitise the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), saying that minimising human intervention in the tax system would help enhance transparency and efficiency. 

Reforms are also being introduced across multiple sectors, including taxation and pensions, he added. The government, he noted, is working to ease the financial burden on salaried individuals and to simplify the tax filing process. 

Business confidence in Pakistan has shown marked improvement, with the latest Foreign Investors’ Business Confidence Survey by the Overseas Investors Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI) revealing a 16-percentage-point jump from -5 per cent to +11 per cent. 

The rebound has been driven by a more optimistic view of business conditions at the company, industry, city and national levels, coupled with stronger expectations for sales growth, expansions, and profitability, said Khurram Schehzad, Advisor to the Finance Minister. 

According to the survey, confidence has improved significantly over the past two years, rising from -25 per cent in May 2023 to +11 per cent in May 2025, a notable turnaround in sentiment among investors. 

Meanwhile, the federal budget for the fiscal year 2025–26 is scheduled to be presented on June 10, with the Economic Survey to be released a day earlier, on June 9. 

Budget documents show that Rs921 billion has been earmarked for the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), a 16 per cent reduction from the revised allocation of Rs1.1 trillion in the ongoing fiscal year. 

While the Planning Commission had initially sought Rs2.9 trillion in line with ministry requests, the Finance Ministry has approved an Indicative Budget Ceiling (IBC) of Rs921 billion. So far, Rs900 billion has been authorised for release under the current PSDP, with additional disbursements expected by the end of June. 

Separately, the government is likely to allocate Rs1.079 trillion in power sector subsidies for the upcoming fiscal year, down from Rs1.190 trillion in 2024–25, according to well-placed sources in the Finance Division. 

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