Pakistan moving ahead with renewed confidence as key economic indicators continue to strengthen: PM

• PM Shehbaz says inflation plunges from 30pc to 5.5pc while policy rate slashed to 10.5pc due to disciplined fiscal management and responsible policymaking
• Highlights IT exports hit $3 billion mark, while tax-to-GDP ratio rises to 10.5pc, saying mining, AI, crypto open new frontiers
• Acknowledges exports continue to face challenges but stressed that the direction was clear and irreversible
• Hails IMF ‘stringent but beneficial’ programme and support, saying Fund now citing Pakistan as a success story for developing countries undertaking tough reforms

DAVOS: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said Pakistan’s economy was showing clear signs of recovery and resilience, noting that the country was moving ahead with renewed confidence as key economic indicators continued to strengthen following difficult but necessary reforms.

Addressing an event at the Pakistan Pavilion on the sidelines of the 56th Annual Meetings of the World Economic Forum, the prime minister said Pakistan had successfully achieved macroeconomic stability and was now firmly transitioning toward export-led growth and sustainable development.

“Pakistan is moving forward with confidence and clear direction as inflation has reduced from 30% to around 5.5%, policy rate has been brought down from 22.5% to 10.5% and our IT exports are also progressing due to supportive measures. Structural reforms and digitization have… pic.twitter.com/UBxiOO27sY

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) January 21, 2026

“Our inflation has come down sharply from 30 percent to 5.5 percent, while the policy rate has been reduced from 22.5 percent to 10.5 percent,” he said, attributing the improvement to disciplined fiscal management and responsible policymaking. He added that Pakistan’s information technology exports had recorded encouraging progress and were now approaching $3 billion annually through offshore channels.

The prime minister acknowledged that exports continued to face challenges but stressed that the direction was clear and irreversible. “Pakistan has to pursue export-led growth,” he said, identifying comprehensive reforms in revenue collection as a central pillar of the government’s economic strategy.

He said the government had introduced fundamental changes in the tax system, which was being fully digitized to improve transparency and compliance. As a result, he said, the tax-to-GDP ratio had risen to 10.5 percent from 9 percent a few years ago, describing the increase as a significant institutional achievement.

براہِ راست: وزیراعظم کا ورلڈ اکنامک فورم کے موقع پر “پاکستان بریک فاسٹ” تقریب سے خطاب https://t.co/5giy7Gm7JV

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) January 21, 2026

Highlighting sector-specific opportunities, Prime Minister Shehbaz said agricultural exports had performed well during the previous year, while Pakistan was also entering the mining and minerals sector in a structured manner. He said agreements had been signed with American and Chinese companies to tap Pakistan’s vast untapped mineral resources in Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

The prime minister said Pakistan was also making rapid progress in emerging areas such as information technology, artificial intelligence and crypto, adding that the country’s large youth population represented both a challenge and a major opportunity.

He said the federal and provincial governments were jointly implementing targeted programs to empower young people through vocational and technical training. Citing the role of the National Vocational and Technical Training Commission (NVTTC), he noted that its programs were subject to third-party audits and international certification, enabling Pakistani youth to secure productive employment in Gulf countries and other global markets.

On foreign relations, the prime minister said Pakistan enjoyed strong and time-tested economic ties with China, while cooperation with the United States was also expanding, particularly in mining, minerals, counterterrorism and technology.

Prime Minister Shehbaz further highlighted the government’s transparent privatization drive, including Pakistan International Airlines, and said additional privatization and outsourcing initiatives were planned in airports, power distribution companies and transmission lines.

Referring to the ongoing IMF programme, he said Pakistan had implemented stringent conditions in letter and spirit, adding that the Fund was now citing Pakistan as a success story for developing countries undertaking tough reforms.

On structural reforms, the prime minister said the government had taken difficult but unavoidable decisions to shut down loss-making and inefficient state-owned entities. He said the Utility Stores Corporation, which had been a heavy burden on the national exchequer and offered substandard goods, had been closed to save public money. He added that the Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services Corporation (PASSCO) and the Pakistan Public Works Department (PWD) had also been shut down, resulting in savings of billions of rupees despite resistance from vested interests.

“We are at a point where Pakistan is about to take off,” the prime minister said, underscoring unity, transparency and sustained reforms as the foundations for long-term growth and shared prosperity.