Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Wednesday that Pakistan has reached a critical turning point, with macroeconomic stability, sustained reforms, and policy continuity restoring confidence and steering the economy toward export-led, long-term growth. He said the progress marked a shift away from recurring economic crises and opened new horizons for both domestic and global investors.
In an interview with USA Today, the finance minister said that Pakistan’s improving macroeconomic indicators were positioning the country for sustainable, long-term economic growth. He noted that renewed investor confidence was being driven by stabilisation measures, easing inflationary pressures, and stronger external balances, all supported by a reform agenda focused on productivity and exports.
Aurangzeb said the government was actively pursuing export-led, productivity-based growth through structural reforms, even while navigating domestic and global challenges. He added that Pakistan was encouraging international investment in emerging sectors including agriculture, minerals, technology, and climate resilience, which he described as central to the country’s future economic strategy.
He highlighted that, for the first time in several years, Pakistan had recorded both a primary fiscal surplus and a current account surplus. According to him, this marked a decisive break from the long-standing cycle of fiscal and external deficits that had repeatedly undermined economic stability in the past.
The minister said strong remittance inflows had played a crucial role in supporting this turnaround, providing much-needed foreign exchange and stabilising external accounts. He also pointed out that inflation had fallen sharply, declining from a peak of around 38 per cent to single-digit levels, offering relief to households and businesses alike.
Aurangzeb further noted that foreign exchange reserves had risen to over $14.5 billion, providing import cover of approximately two-and-a-half months. He said the relative stability of the exchange rate had helped rebuild confidence among investors and market participants, reinforcing the broader stabilisation effort.
While underscoring the importance of macroeconomic stability, the finance minister stressed that sustainable growth remained the central challenge. He acknowledged that economic growth of 2.7 per cent in the previous fiscal year, although an improvement, was insufficient to meet the needs of Pakistan’s rapidly growing population.
He said Pakistan was deliberately moving away from a consumption- and debt-driven growth model toward an export-led approach. According to Aurangzeb, the current federal budget reflected this shift through reforms in taxation, energy pricing, and state-owned enterprises, along with wide-ranging tariff reforms aimed at dismantling decades of protectionism and enhancing global competitiveness.
The minister said Pakistan was aligning its economic strategy with evolving global demand patterns, identifying information technology services, textiles, and agricultural exports as sectors with strong growth potential. He added that efforts were underway to simplify the tax regime for exporters and reduce bureaucratic hurdles to improve long-term productivity and competitiveness.
Discussing the broader reform agenda, Aurangzeb said privatisation of state-owned enterprises, tariff liberalisation, and restructuring of the energy sector were intended to address deep-rooted inefficiencies that had historically strained public finances. He described these measures as part of a long-term vision, echoing the World Bank’s assessment of Pakistan’s potential “East Asia moment”.
He referred to Pakistan’s ten-year Country Partnership Framework with the World Bank, the first of its kind, which places equal emphasis on economic reform, climate resilience, and population management. According to him, the framework reflects a more holistic approach to development beyond short-term fiscal fixes.
Aurangzeb stressed that Pakistan’s future depended on addressing challenges beyond macroeconomic indicators. He identified population growth, climate change, child stunting, learning poverty, and the exclusion of girls from education as critical issues that must be tackled to protect the country’s long-term productive capacity.
He emphasised that increasing women’s participation in education and the workforce was both a social imperative and an economic necessity. On climate resilience, he highlighted Pakistan’s engagement with multilateral partners to strengthen preparedness against frequent floods and droughts.
Acknowledging the risks that remain, the finance minister reaffirmed the government’s commitment to staying the course on reforms despite geopolitical and domestic pressures. He said discipline, consistency, and international cooperation would remain central to safeguarding recent economic gains.
Highlighting opportunities for investors, Aurangzeb pointed to agriculture, minerals and mining, and the emerging digital economy as priority sectors. He cited Pakistan’s agricultural potential, the strategic importance of the Tethyan Copper Belt in Balochistan amid rising global demand for critical minerals, and growing opportunities in data centres, artificial intelligence, and digital services.
Concluding the interview, Aurangzeb invited global investors and partners to engage with Pakistan through trade, investment, and collaboration. He said the country was moving from a narrative of crisis management to one of opportunity and transformation, offering promising prospects for those willing to engage with a market on the cusp of sustainable growth.
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