Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, along with State Bank of Pakistan Governor Jameel Ahmad and senior officials of relevant ministries on Tuesday held a virtual meeting with the Moody’s Rating Agency to provide an in-depth briefing on Pakistan’s macroeconomic outlook, reform agenda, and financial stability.
During the meeting, Aurangzeb informed Moody’s of the significant strides Pakistan has made in stabilizing its economy and laying the foundations for sustainable and inclusive growth. He underlined the successful completion of the final International Monetary Fund (IMF) review under the Stand-By Arrangement and the disbursement of the second tranche and progress under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF) as key milestones restoring confidence in Pakistan’s economic management.
The minister highlighted a series of structural reforms undertaken by the government to anchor long-term stability, including prudent fiscal measures in the Fy2025-26 budget, tariff and trade liberalization targeting export-led growth, and concerted efforts to rationalize expenditure. He also noted encouraging headway during ongoing discussions with the United States on preferential tariff access.
The meeting further outlined Pakistan’s re-engagement with global financial markets, including the successful arrangement of $1 billion in commercial financing from the Middle Eastern region, plans for an inaugural Panda bond, and Pakistan’s intent to explore the Eurobond and other international debt markets as credit ratings improve.
Aurangzeb and his team presented compelling evidence of macroeconomic recovery, including a sharp reduction in inflation, a cut in the policy rate, stabilization of the exchange rate, a current account surplus, and a surge in foreign exchange reserves—crossing $14 billion by the end of June. Improvements in remittance inflows and export performance were also cited as signs of resilience and renewed investor confidence.
The government team provided Moody’s with a comprehensive overview of Pakistan’s reform journey, with a particular emphasis on improving the tax-to-GDP ratio through technology-driven tax administration reforms, digitization of systems, and robust enforcement measures.
The minister emphasized that under the direct oversight of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the government was implementing measures to expand the tax base, plug leakages, and enhance compliance. He noted that the Rs. 2 trillion revenue delta achieved this year had come through autonomous efforts, and the government was firmly committed to reaching a tax-to-GDP target of 13 to 13.5% in the next few years.
Aurangzeb also addressed queries from the Moody’s team and reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to staying the course on macroeconomic reforms, including in areas of privatization, restructuring of state-owned enterprises, and rightsizing of government. Looking ahead, he expressed optimism the improving macroeconomic indicators and reform momentum would be positively acknowledged by rating agencies, further strengthening Pakistan’s case to tap international markets and deepen its external sector stability.
Pakistan, he affirmed, is ready to carry forward this journey of resilience, reform, and recovery to unlock long-term, inclusive, and export-oriented economic growth.