PM for export-led economic growth

The Express Tribune reported that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan's aim is an export-led growth model in which the private sector leads. He made the remarks on Thursday at a gong-striking event marking the debut of Naya Nazimabad Apartments REIT on the Pakistan Stock Exchange. Sharif said decades of subsidies to industrial sectors since the 1960s had not produced significant exports, calling this a bitter reality that must be corrected.

He said budget incentives for the construction industry were producing results, with growth most visible in Karachi. On recent visits to the US and UK, he met bankers who appreciated the reform drive, and he said the IMF chief had called the country a “new Pakistan”, a description he rejected in favour of a “new team”. He added that the budget provided Rs2.3 trillion in tax breaks, that Eurobond issuance was a major success, and that SBP reserves had reached $21.4 billion.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb projected 4% growth for 2027, up from 3.7% last year, and warned that a quick push to 6% through consumption would strain the balance of payments. Tax filers rose 45% to more than 5.7 million this year from 3.9 million last year. Rs60 billion has been disbursed through the Apna Ghar Programme and banks have approved Rs340 billion, and Aurangzeb said the supply side must now take the next step.