Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday announced significant economic progress over the past two years, highlighting that inflation has plummeted from 29.2 per cent to 4.5 per cent while foreign exchange reserves have more than doubled to 21.2 billion dollars.
Addressing a ceremony on economic reforms virtually from Islamabad, the premier stated that the government is now focussing on accelerating growth, expanding exports, and improving the ease of doing business in Pakistan.
He described the new economic governance reforms as the next phase of the nation’s reform journey, signifying a strategic shift from crisis management towards long-term institutional building.
Sharif asserted that these reforms constitute an “implementation-ready framework” designed to translate the administration”s economic priorities into time-bound and measurable actions.
Detailing the country”s fiscal improvements, the Prime Minister noted that the current account has transitioned from a 3.3 billion dollars deficit to a 1.9 billion dollars surplus. He also pointed out that the economy has moved from a primary deficit to a primary surplus, and the overall fiscal deficit has narrowed.
On the revenue front, Sharif reported that the tax-to-GDP ratio has increased from approximately eight per cent to over ten per cent. He added that more than one million new taxpayers have been brought into the formal system, and tax collection recorded a 26 per cent growth in 2025. Furthermore, he mentioned that government systems have been digitised.
Regarding state-owned enterprises, the Prime Minister referred to the successful privatisation of Pakistan International Airlines and First Women Bank. He confirmed that the process for selling other important state-owned entities is underway, with progress deemed satisfactory.
In his concluding remarks, he stated that these economic achievements have been acknowledged and recognised by leading global credit rating agencies.