Govt optimistic to achieve over 5% economic growth, says Tarin

Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Shaukat Tarin said on Monday that Pakistan’s economy is growing by over 5%, expressing optimism that inflation would decline in the coming months as international commodity rate stabilizes.

“We are witnessing economic growth, which is a fact that cannot be opposed,” Tarin said while talking to media in Peshawar. “Two years ago, we were seeing negative growth, but now the trend has reversed, and according to us it is over 5%.”

The advisor, who is about to be elected as a Senator from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the stronghold of the incumbent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, said that the country is facing imported inflation due to four, five items including POL, edible oil, coal and steel.

Tarin further said that the domestic inflation has reduced as compared to last year, adding that overall GDP has also decreased on a net basis.

The advisor added that countries around the world including US are facing high inflation.

Tarin’s statement comes as Pakistan battles double-digit inflation rate, with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) witnessing an increase of 11.53% on year-on-year basis in November 2021 as compared to an increase of 8.3 percent in November 2020, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

Economy’s fundamentals strong: Tarin

Meanwhile, the advisor on finance said that Pakistan’s debt to GDP ratio has reduced by 3.5% despite Covid-19 led economic shocks. “If the debt volume increased, so has the GDP,” he said.

The advisor further said that Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have risen to $20 billion amid fresh deposits from Saudi Arabia. “We are utilizing loans to enhance our FX reserves,” Tarin said.

On Saturday, Pakistan’s central bank had received $3 billion Saudi deposit, to support the country's foreign currency reserves and also contribute to resolving the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Briefing on International Monetary Fund (IMF) $1 billion loan facility, Tarin said, “IMF’s nod is a stamp of approval, which open doors for other international lenders including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and other commercial banks.”

SBP has received $3-billion deposit from Saudi Arabia, says Shaukat Tarin

He said that the exchange rate would stabilize as inflation rate declines in the coming months.

On Friday, Tarin while addressing a press conference expressed hope that the import bill will taper off following a decline in oil prices in the international market and it would have a positive impact on inflation and the current account deficit.

He said that the fundamentals of the economy are strong and moving in the right direction with a growth in revenue of 35%, higher use of energy, and substantial increase in agri output.