GDP growth forecast of 4.8pc approved for next fiscal: Umar

Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar said that GDP growth of 4.8% for the next fiscal year has been approved by the government .

“The annual plan coordination committee has endorsed the GDP growth forecast for next year developed by planning commission of 4.8 percent,” said Umar in a tweet post on Friday. The minister was of the view that the approval reflects the strength of growth momentum in the economy while maintaining strong fundamentals.

“There is a potential upside to this growth also,” he added.

Days ago, Umar, at a press briefing, said that provisional estimates of 3.94 percent growth for the current fiscal year were being questioned by some people.

However, he said that “the numbers for the last (fourth) quarter (April-June) would be even stronger as the economy is growing very fast.”

The minister said that soon after the provisional GDP growth estimate for the current fiscal year were released by the National Account Committee (NAC), a discussion had started. He said that there was nothing new in the numbers as the data that provided a basis for 3.94 percent growth was being released every month but no one questioned them before.