Govt signs two export financing deals
Pakistan's export financing architecture has been strengthened with two agreements: a reinsurance partnership between the Export-Import Bank of Pakistan (Pak EXIM) and the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), and an approximately Rs3 billion SME Risk Pool between the Export Development Fund (EDF) and Pak EXIM.
Federal Minister for Finance Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb said Pakistan was moving from stabilisation towards growth. The economy grew 3.7% in FY26, while the fiscal deficit declined to 2.6% of GDP, its lowest in 22 years. Pakistan has recorded primary surpluses for three consecutive years.
Aurangzeb said the country had an opportunity to move away from boom-and-bust cycles driven by import dependence. The central challenge was ensuring sustainable growth through export-led and private-sector-led expansion.
He noted that despite policy rate movement, financing was available to exporters at 4.5%. He stressed supporting traditional export sectors while diversifying into new products, services and markets, particularly expanding access to competitive financing for SMEs across exporters' value chains.
The minister noted services exports gains, including IT exports of around $4.6 billion and freelancer earnings of around $1.7 billion. However, he said incremental growth around the existing $30 billion goods exports base would not be sufficient.
Aurangzeb welcomed the ICIEC reinsurance partnership, signed by ICIEC CEO Dr Khalid Khalafalla and Pak EXIM President Shahbaz Hussain Syed, saying it would bring international expertise in credit and political-risk mitigation.
He also welcomed the Rs3 billion SME Risk Pool between EDF and Pak EXIM, signed by EDF Chairman Omar Saeed and Syed. The arrangement would strengthen domestic risk-sharing and expand SMEs' access to export credit insurance against non-payment risks.
The minister emphasised that no single institution could deliver Pakistan's export ambitions independently, stressing the importance of an integrated export ecosystem bringing together exporters, commercial banks, EDF, Pak EXIM, the State Bank of Pakistan and the government.
Syed said the ICIEC partnership would strengthen Pak EXIM's underwriting capacity, while the EDF SME Risk Pool would expand SMEs' access to insurance against non-payment risks.
Khalafalla said the partnership aimed to support more exporters, widen access to risk protection and contribute to greater trade diversification and competitiveness.
Aurangzeb reaffirmed the government's commitment to advancing Pakistan's export-led growth agenda.