The Finance Division on Tuesday dismissed reports of an “economic emergency” being imposed in Pakistan and said such messages are being spread by elements who do not want the country to prosper.
“The Finance Division not only strongly denies but categorically denies the claims made in the above message and that there are no plans to impose an economic emergency,” a statement from the division read.
The statement said the message was aimed at “creating an unfortunate uncertainty” about the country’s economic situation and could only be spread by those who “do not want to see Pakistan prosper”.
The division said that in these times of economic hardship, creating and spreading such false messages is against the national interest.
Finance Division issues a rebuttal on false message on supposed economic emergency proposals been circulating on social media. pic.twitter.com/chTW80SyZV
— Ministry of Finance (@FinMinistryPak) December 6, 2022
“A mere reading of the nine points mentioned in the message indicates how far-fetched these proposals are,” the division said, adding that it was “inappropriate” to equate Pakistan with Sri Lanka given the country’s inherent strength and diversity. was The economy
In its defense, the division said that the current difficult economic situation is mainly due to external factors such as the commodity supercycle, the Russia-Ukraine war, the global recession, trade tensions, the Fed’s policy rate hike, and unprecedented flooding. is the result of .
“The government is making great efforts to minimize the impact of such external factors, even as it faces the economic consequences of unprecedented floods and has to meet IMF (International Monetary Fund) conditions. “
The government, according to the statement, is committed to completing the debt program, meeting all external debt repayments on time.
The statement said that in this difficult economic situation, the government has taken several austerity measures with the approval of the federal cabinet.
The Finance Division said that such measures are in the public knowledge and are aimed at eliminating unnecessary expenditure.
Similarly, the government is looking at energy conservation aimed primarily at reducing the import bill, which has declined in the first four months of the current fiscal, the statement said.
Since the beginning of the current fiscal year, the import bill has seen a downward trend as imports decreased by 10.4 percent in July, 7.7 percent in August, 19.7 percent in September, 27.2 percent in October and 33.6 percent in November. Same month of 2021.
The statement said that such discussions will continue in the Cabinet and all decisions will be taken in consultation with all stakeholders and in the best national interest.
He noted that with the efforts of the current government, the IMF program is back on track and negotiations for the ninth review are now at an advanced stage.
Recent efforts by the government have resulted in, among others, a lower current account deficit and Federal Bureau of Revenue (FBR) tax targets being achieved in recent months.
As of December 1, the FBR exceeded both the five-month target of Rs 2,680 billion as well as the monthly target of Rs 537 billion despite import compression and zero rating on petroleum products.
“The pressure on the external accounts is also likely to ease in the near term. While structural adjustments are still needed in the medium term, the country’s economic situation is now moving towards stability.”
The division urges people to play their part for economic improvement and stability and not to heed “malicious rumours”, which are against Pakistan’s national interest.
