Pakistan starts preparations for new fiscal year's budget

The Pakistan government has commenced preparation for the budget for fiscal year 2025-26 (FY26), in which it is expected to set historic high exports and remittance targets on hopes of higher economic growth and increasing job opportunities in the Middle East.

Sources in the Ministry of Finance revealed to Nukta that the government expects healthy growth in remittances and exports in the fiscal year starting from July 1.

During the current fiscal year, it is expected that remittances and exports would likely cross the stipulated target set at the time of announcement of budget in June last year.

Exports during the current fiscal year have been estimated to reach around $32.98 billion against the set target of $32.34 billion, the sources said.

During the previous fiscal year, export receipts stood around $30.96 billion.

Moreover, in the current fiscal year, remittance arrivals might touch historic high of $35.23 billion whereas the government's target was around $30.27 billion. In the preceding fiscal year, remittances touched $30.25 billion.

During the current fiscal year, imports might surge to nearly $58.98 billion compared with earlier estimates of $57.28 billion. The imports would be higher against the estimates because of the removal of restrictions on dollar-buying and recovery in some sectors.

However, a worrisome factor has been a continuous decline in the industrial production which is still showing negative trends.

For the financial year 2025-26, exports and remittances have been estimated at $36.12 billion and $37 billion, respectively, according to the sources.

In the new fiscal year, the government has set a target of $66.25 billion for imports.