ISLAMABAD:Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has warned that protests, strikes and sit-ins could cause Pakistan’s economy an estimated loss of Rs120 billion per day, potentially disrupting the country’s transition from economic stabilisation to growth.
Speaking to the media, Aurangzeb said Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves had reached a record level, the current account was in surplus and remittances were continuing to increase. He said the country was now moving from economic stability towards economic growth.
The finance minister also highlighted the impact of the ongoing situation in the Middle East, saying disruptions to supply chains, along with rising freight and insurance costs, were creating major challenges for global trade.
Against this backdrop, Aurangzeb questioned calls for marches, strikes and sit-ins, warning that disruptions to economic activity could affect Pakistan’s growth trajectory.
According to estimates cited by the finance minister, the services sector could face losses of around Rs86 billion per day, while the industrial sector could suffer losses of approximately Rs25 billion daily. The government could also face an estimated Rs17 billion in daily revenue losses if economic activity is disrupted
Aurangzeb described such disruption as potentially “self-inflicted” economic damage and said the impact could ultimately be felt by the public, particularly workers and small businesses.
He said Pakistan had achieved economic stability after difficult decisions and efforts and stressed the need to maintain the momentum towards sustainable economic growth.
The finance minister also said that hostile forces were behind terrorism in the country, without providing further details.
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