Overview
- Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said Monday that higher oil costs and a development cut now threaten the 4.2% growth target.
- The Public Sector Development Programme was reduced by Rs173 billion to Rs837 billion to finance the Austerity Fund that subsidised diesel during harvest.
- The government passed on part of a Rs55 per litre fuel increase and absorbed about Rs129 billion, then trimmed the petroleum levy and cut prices in April to ease costs for households and farmers.
- Official data show 3.8% growth in the first half of the year with remittances up 8.2% to $30.3 billion and a March current account surplus of $1.07 billion.
- Iqbal warned the oil shock from the Middle East could hit harder in the first half of the next fiscal year as Pakistan remains exposed to disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz.