AIRLINK 184.92 Decreased By ▼ -0.27 (-0.15%)
BOP 9.61 Decreased By ▼ -0.32 (-3.22%)
CNERGY 7.26 Decreased By ▼ -0.03 (-0.41%)
FCCL 36.43 Decreased By ▼ -0.21 (-0.57%)
FFL 14.34 Decreased By ▼ -0.19 (-1.31%)
FLYNG 24.28 Decreased By ▼ -0.64 (-2.57%)
HUBC 126.41 Decreased By ▼ -0.42 (-0.33%)
HUMNL 12.80 Decreased By ▼ -0.27 (-2.07%)
KEL 4.29 Decreased By ▼ -0.03 (-0.69%)
KOSM 5.94 Decreased By ▼ -0.12 (-1.98%)
MLCF 42.27 Decreased By ▼ -0.62 (-1.45%)
OGDC 198.51 Increased By ▲ 3.07 (1.57%)
PACE 6.08 Decreased By ▼ -0.21 (-3.34%)
PAEL 37.75 Decreased By ▼ -0.21 (-0.55%)
PIAHCLA 17.09 Increased By ▲ 0.19 (1.12%)
PIBTL 7.74 Decreased By ▼ -0.05 (-0.64%)
POWER 9.22 Decreased By ▼ -0.17 (-1.81%)
PPL 168.09 Increased By ▲ 0.20 (0.12%)
PRL 32.75 Decreased By ▼ -1.27 (-3.73%)
PTC 22.42 Decreased By ▼ -0.09 (-0.4%)
SEARL 101.88 Decreased By ▼ -2.09 (-2.01%)
SILK 1.07 Decreased By ▼ -0.12 (-10.08%)
SSGC 35.53 Decreased By ▼ -0.42 (-1.17%)
SYM 17.92 Decreased By ▼ -0.18 (-0.99%)
TELE 8.17 Increased By ▲ 0.15 (1.87%)
TPLP 11.70 Increased By ▲ 0.07 (0.6%)
TRG 66.12 Decreased By ▼ -0.04 (-0.06%)
WAVESAPP 11.79 Decreased By ▼ -0.34 (-2.8%)
WTL 1.53 Increased By ▲ 0.01 (0.66%)
YOUW 3.79 Decreased By ▼ -0.02 (-0.52%)
BR100 11,609 Increased By 39.9 (0.34%)
BR30 34,116 Increased By 81.8 (0.24%)
KSE100 110,323 Increased By 21.8 (0.02%)
KSE30 34,411 Increased By 24.5 (0.07%)

Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Muhammad Aurangzeb Wednesday reaffirmed that Pakistan’s macroeconomic indicators are “moving in the right direction”.

Addressing the ‘International Affordable, Green & Resilient Housing Conference’, organised by the Pakistan Mortgage Refinance Company (PMRC), Aurangzeb highlighted the government’s progress over the past 12 to 14 months.

“We have made good and significant progress, whether it is the reversal of the country’s bane, and both fiscal and current accounts.

“Month after month, we are showing surpluses and leading towards a sustainable point,” said Aurangzeb.

During his address, the minister reiterated that the authorities remain committed to implementing the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.

Aurangzeb, a former banker, said the country’s foreign exchange reserves have improved from just two weeks of import cover to now 2.5 months.

“If we stay on this trajectory by the end of this fiscal year, we will be at 3 months of import cover, which will be a good place to be in terms of international benchmark,” he said.

The minister shared that the inflation rate declined to 4.9% in November 2024, the lowest in 78 months.

Addressing monetary policy, he stated that while interest rate decisions remain under the central bank’s purview, there have been positive developments in market rates.

“The 6-month KIBOR has dropped below 13%. Large corporates are actually borrowing in single digits, so we are moving in the right direction,” he said.

Turning to the housing sector, Aurangzeb underscored its importance linking it to two existential problems of Pakistan i.e. population and climate.

He stated that the government is committed to providing policy support to boost private enterprise, particularly focusing on the housing sector.

“Housing is a critical element, so to fix it and get it right is going to be critical as we go forward,” he said.

“However, we are not going back to directed lending, it creates distortions and has its implications for the medium term,” he maintained.

Comments

200 characters