The Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue, Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, said on Tuesday that Pakistan’s economy has picked up as is indicated by the performance of both the external and internal economic sectors.
“Good news is coming about the economy,” the advisor said during a media briefing here. He was flanked by the Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Shibli Faraz.
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Dr. Shaikh said that on the internal front, Large Scale Manufacturing has witnessed around 5 percent growth after a long time with cement sales increasing up to 20 million tons, while there had been considerable growth in automobile products and fertilizers products.
He added that the country’s exports were increasing while the textile sector has received export orders for up to December.
In addition, the rupee has stabilized and enhanced its value while the foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) have risen up to $12.740 billion.
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On the fiscal side, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has collected Rs. 1340 billion in revenues in four months, which is more than the actual target that had been earmarked for the period.
Also, the FBR issued refunds of Rs. 128 billion during these four months against the refunds of Rs. 50 billion during the same period of last year while the total refunds during the last fiscal year stood at Rs. 248 billion.
Dr. Shaikh stated that the government had reduced its expenditures as there were no borrowings from the SBP while no supplementary grant had been issued.
