Tag: GDP

Pakistan Posts Rs1.27tr Fiscal Surplus in First Quarter

Pakistan has recorded a fiscal surplus of Rs1,274 billion, equal to 0.9 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), during the first three months of the current financial year, the Finance Ministry said on Friday.

The surplus for the July-September quarter of fiscal year 2026-27 marks the third consecutive first-quarter surplus, after 23 years in which the first quarter ended in deficit, according to the ministry’s data.

Khurram Schehzad, adviser to the finance minister, said in a post on X that the result reflected sustained fiscal prudence, expenditure discipline and macroeconomic stability. He said the surplus showed that the government’s fiscal turnaround was continuing.

The primary surplus, which excludes interest payments on debt, reached Rs2,974 billion, or 2.1 per cent of GDP, during the quarter. That was Rs239 billion, or 8.7 per cent, higher than the government had planned for the period.

The surplus was smaller than in the same quarter last year, when it stood at Rs2,119 billion, and lower than the Rs1,896 billion recorded in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025. The Finance Ministry said the narrowing was mainly because of lower revenues, including a 20 per cent fall in profits transferred by the State Bank of Pakistan, which dropped to Rs1.9 trillion.

According to the ministry, better tax collection and control over government spending helped achieve the surplus, despite tax relief measures announced in the budget. The primary surplus of 2.1 per cent of GDP is slightly above the International Monetary Fund’s full-year target of 2 per cent for fiscal year 2027.

Pakistan is in the middle of a $7 billion programme with the International Monetary Fund, approved in September 2024, which requires the government to strengthen public finances and keep spending under control as the economy recovers from a prolonged crisis.

The first quarter of the financial year is generally stronger for the public finances because of seasonal transfers of profits from the State Bank of Pakistan. The Finance Ministry said it would keep fiscal policy focused on preserving stability through stronger revenue collection and careful spending.

Meanwhile, profits of companies listed on Pakistan’s stock market increased by 25 per cent during January-September 2026, recording their highest growth for the same period in three years, according to the 24NewsHD report.

The government has set a fiscal deficit target of 3.6 per cent of GDP for the full financial year 2026-27, with a primary surplus target of 2 per cent of GDP.

November 13, 2026
برطانوی معیشت 0.7 فیصد بڑھ گئی، دو سال کی تیز ترین ترقی

برطانیہ کی معیشت جولائی تا ستمبر 2026 کی سہ ماہی میں 0.7 فیصد بڑھی، جو دو سال سے زائد عرصے میں تیز ترین سہ ماہی ترقی ہے۔ یہ بات جمعرات کو جاری سرکاری اعداد و شمار میں بتائی گئی۔

آفس فار نیشنل اسٹیٹسٹکس کے مطابق تیسری سہ ماہی میں مجموعی ملکی پیداوار میں 0.7 فیصد اضافہ ہوا، جو دوسری سہ ماہی کے 0.5 فیصد سے زیادہ ہے۔ یہ 2024 کی پہلی سہ ماہی کے بعد کسی بھی کیلنڈر سہ ماہی کی سب سے مضبوط ترقی ہے اور رائٹرز کے ماہرین معاشیات کے سروے کی اوسط پیش گوئی کے مطابق ہے۔

سالانہ بنیاد پر بھی ترقی میں تیزی آئی۔ معیشت گزشتہ سال کی اسی سہ ماہی کے مقابلے میں 1.9 فیصد بڑی تھی، جو 2024 کی چوتھی سہ ماہی کے بعد سب سے مضبوط سالانہ شرح ہے اور رائٹرز کے سروے کی پیش گوئی کے مطابق بھی ہے۔ تین ماہ کی مسلسل بنیاد پر ترقی مئی کے بعد سب سے تیز رہی۔

یہ اعداد و شمار سال کی مضبوط پہلی ششماہی کو آگے بڑھاتے ہیں اور ایران جنگ کے آغاز کے بعد سست روی کی پیش گوئیوں کو غلط ثابت کرتے ہیں۔ مصنوعی ذہانت میں سرمایہ کاری نے بہتری میں مدد کی، اور شماریاتی ادارے نے مصنوعی ذہانت سے متعلق صنعتوں میں وسیع مضبوطی کی طرف اشارہ کیا۔

ٹیکنالوجی سے متعلق اخراجات کی اس حمایت نے تیسری سہ ماہی کو اس کمزور کارکردگی سے مختلف شکل دی جس کی بہت سے پیش گوئی کرنے والوں کو توقع تھی۔ رفتار کھونے کے بجائے معیشت نے موسم گرما کے مہینوں میں رفتار پکڑی اور 2026 کی پہلی ششماہی میں درج ترقی پر مزید اضافہ کیا۔

بین الاقوامی سطح پر بھی کارکردگی مضبوط رہی۔ تیسری سہ ماہی میں برطانوی ترقی گروپ آف سیون کی ترقی یافتہ معیشتوں میں دوسری تیز ترین تھی، جو صرف امریکا سے پیچھے تھی۔ رواں سال اب تک کی ترقی 2017 کے بعد سب سے مضبوط ہے، اگر وبا کے بعد کی بحالی کو شمار نہ کیا جائے۔

آنے والے دنوں کا منظرنامہ بھی بہتر ہوا ہے۔ بینک آف انگلینڈ کو اب توقع ہے کہ رواں سال مجموعی ملکی پیداوار میں 1.6 فیصد اضافہ ہوگا، جو 28 اکتوبر کو وزیر خزانہ جان ہیلی کے بجٹ کے بعد حکومت کے آفس فار بجٹ رسپانسبلٹی کی 1.2 فیصد کی پیش گوئی سے کہیں زیادہ مضبوط ہے۔ اس بجٹ کی پیش گوئی میں حالیہ مضبوط جی ڈی پی اعداد و شمار اور ماضی کے اعداد میں اوپر کی جانب نظرثانی کو شامل نہیں کیا گیا تھا۔

گھرانوں اور کاروبار کے لیے یہ اعداد و شمار بتاتے ہیں کہ معیشت خدشات سے بہتر کارکردگی دکھا رہی ہے، اور موسم گرما میں پیداوار میں اضافہ ہوا۔ ترقی اتنی وسیع تھی کہ سالانہ شرح تقریباً دو سال میں سب سے بلند ہو گئی، حالانکہ دنیا بھر میں جنگیں، مہنگائی اور دیگر دباؤ توجہ کے لیے مقابلہ کرتے رہے۔

تیسری سہ ماہی کے اعداد و شمار جولائی، اگست اور ستمبر کا احاطہ کرتے ہیں، اور آنے والے مہینوں میں ان پر گہری نظر رکھی جائے گی کہ آیا یہ رفتار سال کی آخری سہ ماہی تک برقرار رہ سکتی ہے۔

November 12, 2026
UK Economy Grows 0.7% in Fastest Quarter Since 2024

Britain’s economy grew by 0.7 percent in the three months from July to September 2026, its fastest quarterly growth in more than two years, according to official figures published on Thursday.

The Office for National Statistics said gross domestic product expanded by 0.7 percent in the third quarter, up from growth of 0.5 percent in the second quarter. It was the strongest calendar-quarter expansion since the first quarter of 2024, and it matched the median forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.

On an annual basis, growth also picked up. The economy was 1.9 percent larger than in the same quarter a year earlier, the strongest annual reading since the fourth quarter of 2024, and again in line with the Reuters poll forecast. On a rolling three-month basis, growth was the fastest since May.

The figures extend a strong first half of the year and defied predictions of a slowdown made after the Iran war began. Investment in artificial intelligence helped drive the improvement, with the statistics office pointing to widespread strength in industries that may be related to artificial intelligence.

That support from technology-related spending gave the third quarter a different shape from the weaker performance many forecasters had expected. Instead of losing momentum, the economy gathered pace through the summer months, building on the growth recorded in the first half of 2026.

In international terms, the performance was also strong. British growth in the third quarter was the second-fastest among the Group of Seven advanced economies, just behind the United States. Growth so far this year has been the strongest since 2017, excluding the rebound that followed the pandemic, according to analysis of the figures.

The outlook has also improved. The Bank of England now expects gross domestic product to expand by 1.6 percent this year, much stronger than the 1.2 percent forecast by the government’s Office for Budget Responsibility after finance minister John Healey’s budget on October 28. That budget forecast did not factor in some of the recent stronger GDP data and upward revisions to past numbers.

For households and businesses, the figures suggest an economy that is holding up better than feared, with output rising across the summer. The growth was broad enough to lift the annual rate to its highest in almost two years, even as wars, inflation and other pressures continued to compete for attention around the world.

The third-quarter figures cover July, August and September, and they will be watched closely in the coming months for signs of whether the pace can be sustained into the final quarter of the year.

November 12, 2026
Pakistan GDP Growth Revised Down to 3.65% for FY26

Islamabad: The government has revised Pakistan’s gross domestic product growth slightly downward to 3.65 per cent for the fiscal year 2025-26, trimming the earlier provisional estimate of 3.70 per cent. The revision was approved on Monday at the 118th meeting of the National Accounts Committee (NAC), held at the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) in Islamabad.

According to the PBS, the revised national accounts place the size of Pakistan’s economy at Rs126.4 trillion, equivalent to $450.4 billion, in FY26, compared with Rs114.9 trillion or $408.7 billion in the previous fiscal year. Per capita income is estimated at Rs531,897, or $1,896, up from earlier dollar estimates, though it remains the lowest in the region.

The committee attributed the downward adjustment to a mild slowdown in the industrial and services sectors. For FY26, agriculture growth was revised upward to 3.50 per cent from 2.89 per cent, while industry was lowered to 3.34 per cent from 3.51 per cent and services to 3.81 per cent from 4.09 per cent.

Within agriculture, important crops improved from 0.65 per cent to 1.59 per cent on the back of wheat and maize, while other crops surged from 2.43 per cent to 4.28 per cent, helped by higher production of pulses (6.3pc), fruits (1.3pc), tomatoes (44pc), oilseeds (5.4pc) and green fodder (2.4pc). Livestock growth eased slightly to 3.71 per cent, while forestry expanded by 10.80 per cent and fishing by 1.39 per cent.

Industry’s weaker reading reflects a decline in large-scale manufacturing from 6.11 per cent to 5.01 per cent. Automobiles posted a striking 57.77 per cent expansion, but pharmaceuticals, iron and steel, chemicals and leather products all contracted.

The final quarter slowed sharply: GDP grew just 2 per cent in Q4 of FY26, far below the 6.07 per cent a year earlier, as industry contracted 4.70 per cent on a 33.19 per cent fall in electricity, gas and water supply. Earlier quarters were revised upward: Q1 to 3.89 per cent, Q2 to 4.31 per cent and Q3 to 4.42 per cent.

The services sector, the largest part of the economy, saw growth trimmed to 3.81 per cent. Wholesale and retail trade fell to 2.37 per cent from 3.71 per cent on weaker manufacturing and imports, but transportation and storage improved to 3.23 per cent, information and communication jumped to 9.53 per cent and finance and insurance rose to 4.23 per cent.

The committee also revised FY25 growth down to 3.11 per cent from 3.18 per cent. The NAC’s 3.65 per cent estimate sits close to the outlook of multilateral lenders: the International Monetary Fund has projected 3.6 per cent, while the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank each expect 3.7 per cent, and the State Bank of Pakistan sees growth near 3.7 per cent.

October 20, 2026