Economic survey 2018-19

Pay, pensions rise; income tax threshold slashed; FBR collection target set at Rs5.5t; 8.2% budget deficit projected

Amount is insufficient for Rs8tr worth of ongoing and new projects that will take 12 years

PM Khan’s iteration of Pakistan being one of the most charitable nations is quite a paradox

The key is to carefully differentiate between wasteful and necessary govt expenditure and undertake some bold reforms

Grows just 0.85% due to water shortage in FY19 compared to 3.8% target

Improvement seen in electronics, engineering and wood products

It comes mainly due to setting up of new CPEC power plants

Significant amount will now be recovered under a deal with the IMF

The decline in reserves was attributed to payments on account of external debt servicing

Major increase of Rs1.2tr in public debt came from 44% rupee depreciation

Finance adviser makes pitch for toughest ever budget

China Development Bank provides $2.23b worth of commercial loans

Major challenges during current fiscal year were runaway imports, swelling trade and current account deficits