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ISLAMABAD: After years of twin deficits, Pakistan has achieved fiscal and current account surpluses and is now pivoting toward export-led growth and structural reforms to secure long-term economic stability and investment opportunities.&nbsp;This was stated in an article by Pakistan&rsquo;s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, published by USA Today on Dec. 22. From deficits to surpluses&ldquo;The country&rsquo;s long battle with twin deficits &mdash; fiscal shortfalls and external imbalances &mdash; appears to have taken a decisive turn,&rdquo; Aurangzeb writes, adding, &ldquo;For the first time in years, Pakistan has recorded a primary surplus on the fiscal side alongside a current account surplus.&rdquo; He credited remittance inflows for providing &ldquo;much of the strength behind this improvement.&rdquo; Highlighting the country&rsquo;s achievements on the economic front, Aurangzeb states, &ldquo;inflation, once running at a crippling 38%, has fallen into the single digits, while foreign reserves have climbed to cover two and a half months of imports, surpassing $14.5 billion.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;The rupee has also shown rare stability, reinforcing investor confidence that Pakistan has moved beyond its latest crisis cycle.&rdquo; Moving beyond consumptionAbout the country&rsquo;s macroeconomic position, the Pakistani finance minister underlined that &ldquo;the economy expanded by 2.7% in the last fiscal year, which, although positive, remains well below what is needed to generate employment for a rapidly growing population.&rdquo;&nbsp; Historically, Pakistan&rsquo;s growth spurts have been fueled by consumption and debt, only to collapse into renewed balance-of-payments problems.&nbsp; This time, Aurangzeb insists, the strategy is different. Export-led growth&nbsp;The government is steering toward export-led growth, supported by a new budget that introduces structural reforms in taxation, energy, and state-owned enterprises.&nbsp; Tariff reform, in particular, is designed to end decades of protectionism and force industries to become globally competitive.&nbsp; As the minister noted, &ldquo;If they are competitive, then we move towards export-led growth.&rdquo; This shift also reflects a recognition that global demand is changing, and Pakistan must carve out its share in international markets.&nbsp; Information technology services, textiles, and agricultural exports are areas where the government sees potential to scale up and capture greater value. The finance minister writes that, &ldquo;Pakistan&rsquo;s IT exports surpassed four billion US dollars last year, and officials believe this figure could double within five years if regulatory clarity and infrastructure investments continue.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;The finance ministry has also been working to simplify tax regimes for exporters, aiming to reduce the bureaucratic bottlenecks that have often discouraged competitiveness,&rdquo; he writes.&nbsp; Aurangzeb underlines that &ldquo;By redirecting focus from short-lived consumption to long-term productivity, Islamabad is trying to rewrite the country&rsquo;s economic playbook.&rdquo;&nbsp; Resilience for long term&ldquo;Beyond fiscal stability, Pakistan&rsquo;s reform agenda is broad and ambitious,&rdquo; the finance minister writes, adding, &ldquo;Privatization of state-owned companies, tariff liberalization, and new regulatory structures in the energy sector are intended to reduce inefficiencies that have long drained the exchequer.&rdquo;&nbsp; Aurangzeb stressed that these moves are about more than short-term savings.&nbsp; The finance minister further states, &ldquo;They form the foundation of what the World Bank has described as Pakistan&rsquo;s potential &#39;East Asia moment,&#39; recalling how liberalization spurred the economic rise of Southeast Asia.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;Islamabad has already signed a landmark ten-year Country Partnership Framework with the World Bank, the first of its kind, which prioritizes climate resilience and population management alongside economic reform,&rdquo; he adds. Existential priorities&ldquo;Population growth and climate change,&rdquo; Aurangzeb underscores, are &ldquo;existential challenges that must be addressed urgently.&rdquo; &ldquo;Child stunting, learning poverty, and especially the exclusion of girls from education risk constraining the country&rsquo;s productive capacity for generations.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;We have to address that.&rdquo;&nbsp; On climate, the minister writes, &ldquo;Pakistan is leveraging technical assistance and financing from multilateral institutions to build resilience against increasingly severe floods and droughts.&rdquo; Risks on the horizonAurangzeb states, &ldquo;Global commodity price shocks, particularly in oil, could undo some of the progress on inflation and the current account.&rdquo; &ldquo;Political instability remains a perennial concern, with reforms often stalling amid shifting alliances.&rdquo; The finance minister maintains, &ldquo;The burden of external debt also looms large, making Pakistan dependent on continued discipline and international support.&rdquo; Opportunities for investorsAbout opportunities for investors, Aurangzeb writes that &ldquo;agriculture remains a priority&rdquo;, adding, &ldquo;minerals and mining sector is another area drawing attention.&rdquo; &nbsp; &ldquo;The Tethyan Copper Belt in Balochistan, home to one of the country&rsquo;s first copper projects, is being framed as a supply-side answer to global shortages.&rdquo; Aurnagzeb states, &ldquo;The government is also focusing on the new economy &mdash; data centers, artificial intelligence, and other digital services.&rdquo; Regulatory frameworks are being updated to ensure Pakistan is not left behind in emerging sectors.&nbsp; &ldquo;Technology change is a real game changer for Pakistan,&rdquo; writes Aurangzeb, encouraging US investors to take a closer look. Message to the worldIn his message to the world, Aurangzeb writes: &ldquo;Come and visit us. It can be trade or investment. But most of all, it&rsquo;s a beautiful country.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;By marrying structural reform with an invitation to partnership, Pakistan is presenting itself not as a perennial risk story but as an emerging opportunity in South Asia.&rdquo;&nbsp; &ldquo;Investors willing to look beyond past turbulence may find in today&rsquo;s Pakistan a market at the cusp of transformation,&rdquo; he concludes.

Economy

Pakistan has entered the 2025 fiscal year on a strong footing, with Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb highlighting a combination of fiscal surplus, external balance, and structural reforms as the country positions itself for sustainable growth.

‘Come and visit us’: Finance minister Aurangzeb says Pakistan 'emerging opportunity' for investors

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is pursuing an agreement with Russia on oil and gas exploration and refinery modernization as bilateral trade between the countries more than doubled last year, Pakistan&#39;s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Tuesday. In an interview with the Russian state-owned channel, RIA Novosti, at the Momentum conference in Riyadh, Aurangzeb said that &quot;All these areas are the strengths of Russia. And we would be very happy if they agreed on an agreement in this industry with Pakistan.&quot; The State Bank of Pakistan data shows trade volume between the two countries rose to $1.81 billion in the fiscal year ending June 2024. It was largely driven by imports of discounted Russian crude oil. Russian Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev said in November 2024 that Russia is discussing the possibility of Russian companies participating in a project to modernize a refinery in Pakistan, according to Pakistan&rsquo;s Ministry of Energy. He stated that the two countries would continue cooperation in hydrocarbon exploration and development. Aurangzeb identified energy, oil and gas, minerals, and mining as the main areas of trade potential. He noted Pakistan&#39;s interest in a steel plant project, noting that the country&#39;s previous large steel facility was built with Russian support. He stated that Pakistan aims to attract foreign investment by ensuring macroeconomic stability. The country&#39;s foreign exchange reserves now &ldquo;cover imports for two and a half months&rdquo; and are &ldquo;approaching a three-month&rdquo; indicator. Aurangzeb also said Pakistan is an active member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and has expressed interest in joining BRICS. He mentioned that Pakistan was studying alternative payment systems as relations with BRICS develop. Pakistan&#39;s Minister for Petroleum, Ali Pervez Malik, has held meetings with heads of Gazprom and ROSGEO to boost cooperation during his visit to Russia for the 14th St Petersburg International Gas Forum in October 2025. Both sides agreed to improve the partnership between Pakistan&#39;s state-owned Oil and Gas Development Company Limited and Gazprom. Similarly, the 10th session of the Russian-Pakistani Intergovernmental Commission focused on expanding trade, easing customs barriers, and advancing new joint projects. Russian Consul-General Andrey V. Federov said in July that Russia seeks to double the volume of bilateral trade with Pakistan.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb says Pakistan is pursuing Russian oil and gas exploration agreements and refinery modernization, as bilateral trade surges, driven by discounted oil imports and cooperation.

Pakistan in talks with Russia on oil sector agreement: Finance minister

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the United Kingdom (UK) have reaffirmed their commitment to deeper cooperation on economic reforms, governance improvements and development priorities during a meeting in Islamabad between Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and UK Minister for Development Baroness Chapman, the Finance Division said on Tuesday.&nbsp;According to the ministry&rsquo;s statement, &ldquo;Both sides exchanged views on Pakistan&rsquo;s macroeconomic stabilization efforts and the Government&rsquo;s commitment to structural reforms in taxation, energy, state-owned enterprises, public finance management, and privatization.&rdquo;&nbsp;Aurangzeb thanked the UK for its backing at the International Monetary Fund, saying that support &ldquo;contributed to the successful completion of Pakistan&rsquo;s program reviews.&rdquo;&nbsp;He outlined progress on broadening the tax base, improving transparency through technology, and pushing governance reforms.&nbsp;The minister also highlighted work under way on energy-sector efficiencies, debt management, public-sector right-sizing, pension reform and fiscal sustainability aimed at creating space for social-sector spending.&nbsp;The discussion also covered Pakistan&rsquo;s devolved governance system, with both sides stressing the need for stronger federal&ndash;provincial coordination to boost investment in health, education, population management and climate resilience.&nbsp;Aurangzeb emphasized aligning development spending with national priorities and accelerating programs supported by the World Bank and other partners.&nbsp;Both delegations reviewed women&rsquo;s economic participation, demographic pressures and policy options for family planning and social-protection measures.&nbsp;The statement said, &ldquo;Baroness Chapman reaffirmed the United Kingdom&rsquo;s readiness to provide technical assistance, regulatory support, and capacity-building under ongoing partnerships, particularly in areas such as digitalization, governance reforms, investment climate improvement, and ease of doing business.&rdquo;&nbsp;It added that both sides reiterated their commitment &ldquo;to strengthening the long-standing partnership&rdquo; and agreed to continue close cooperation on shared development goals. Pakistan also welcomed prospects for expanded collaboration on economic management, climate and population policy, and financial-sector reforms.

Foreign Affairs

Pakistan’s Finance Minister met the UK’s Development Minister in Islamabad to discuss economic reforms, governance, and development priorities. Both sides agreed on macroeconomic stabilization, social-sector investment, women’s participation, federal–provincial coordination, and continued UK technical support.


Articles tagged with "Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb"

‘Come and visit us’: Finance minister Aurangzeb says Pakistan 'emerging opportunity' for investors

Pakistan in talks with Russia on oil sector agreement: Finance minister

Pakistan, UK vow deeper cooperation on reforms, governance, development priorities