Upcoming budget to feature 'bold measures': Aurangzeb

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Monday that Pakistan’s upcoming federal budget for fiscal year 2025-26 will introduce bold measures and provide a strategic direction for the country’s economy.

Addressing an event organised by Karandaaz Pakistan and the Pakistan Banks Association (PBA) in Islamabad.

According to a report by Buisness Recorder, Aurangzeb said the budget will not only focus on revenue and expenditure but will also outline the broader economic path ahead.

“We are going to bring some bold measures during the budget for FY2025-26,” he said, stressing the importance of making the budget document “more strategic” rather than simply “making the math work.”

The federal budget is scheduled to be presented on June 10, 2025, while the Pakistan Economic Survey 2024-25 will be released a day earlier, on June 9.

Aurangzeb emphasised the need for export-led growth and expressed satisfaction that Pakistan’s economy has surpassed the $400 billion mark, signalling positive progress.

He also stated that the international community recognises Pakistan’s economic turnaround and the macroeconomic stability the country has achieved.

However, Aurangzeb cautioned against repeating past mistakes, saying previous macroeconomic stability efforts had faltered due to “consumption-led growth” which triggered balance of payment and foreign exchange problems.

“To break away from the boom and bust cycle, Pakistan needs to stay the course on structural reforms,” he said.

The minister underlined the government’s commitment to ongoing reforms in taxation, energy, and State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs), along with the right-sizing of the federal government to ensure sustainable growth.

He admitted that progress on SOE reforms lagged last year but promised the government would accelerate efforts, including the relaunch of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) privatisation transaction, which he expressed optimism about.

Aurangzeb highlighted plans to simplify the tax return filing process for salaried taxpayers, aiming to reduce the number of required measures from 140-150 to just nine, to be implemented by the end of September.

Regarding debt management, the finance minister said that government debt servicing costs have decreased by Rs1 trillion during the current fiscal year.

He also announced plans to restructure and modernise the debt management office in the coming year.

Aurangzeb noted that Pakistan’s long-term economic goals include becoming a $3 trillion economy by 2047, but said this requires addressing critical challenges such as population growth and climate change.

He referenced the 10-year Country Partnership Framework signed with the World Bank, highlighting that four out of six key focus points deal with climate and population issues.

The minister also commented on recent regional tensions, stating, “These are very tense moments. The entire nation has rightly celebrated the way our armed forces and political leadership have stood up against the aggression.”

He revealed that efforts had been made to derail Pakistan’s engagement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), particularly attempts to block meetings related to financial support.

Despite these challenges, Aurangzeb said Pakistan’s case with the IMF was ultimately “discussed and decided on merit.”

He urged the same unity shown in recent times of aggression to be applied to the economic front.

The IMF ended its recent 10-day talks on Pakistan’s fiscal year 2026 budget without a formal agreement, announcing that discussions will continue in the coming days.

Nathan Porter, the outgoing IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan, said the talks focused on increasing revenue through improved tax compliance and expanding the tax base, as well as prioritising expenditure.

Initially planned to be held in Pakistan from May 13 to 23, the talks started remotely from Turkiye due to India-Pakistan tensions before moving to face-to-face meetings in Islamabad on May 19.

Previously, the government postponed the presentation of the federal budget for fiscal year 2025–26 by more than a week, moving it from June 2 to June 10, according to sources in the finance ministry.

The delay comes as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is currently on a multi-nation diplomatic tour to express gratitude to friendly countries for their support during recent tensions with India.

Meanwhile, the IMF ended its recent 10-day talks on Pakistan’s fiscal year 2026 budget without a formal agreement, announcing that discussions will continue in the coming days.

Nathan Porter, the outgoing IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan, said the talks focused on increasing revenue through improved tax compliance and expanding the tax base, as well as prioritising expenditure.

Initially planned to be held in Pakistan from May 13 to 23, the talks started remotely from Turkiye due to India-Pakistan tensions before moving to face-to-face meetings in Islamabad on May 19.