Finance Minister says road map prepared for economic revival

The government has prepared a road map for economic revival as economy is as big a challenge as terrorism, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Tuesday.
 

Releasing economic survey at a news conference in Islamabad he said an aggressive plan has been prepared to eliminate the circular debt at the earliest.

He said licenses for 3-G spectrum of mobile phone would be auctioned in a transparent manner so that the mobile industry grows further creating more employment opportunities.

He said tax net would be expanded and appealed to all citizens to pay their due taxes.

Presenting salient features of the economic survey for the outgoing financial year‚ the finance minister said the GDP growth rate remained three point six percent as against the targeted four point three percent.

Hr said average GDP growth rate during the last five years remained at three percent‚ which is pathetic in view of two point one percent population growth.

He said the previous PML-N government in late 2000s touched the figure of seven percent GDP growth rate and the sitting government is determined to take it back to the same level in the intermediate term.

The minister said the country missed almost all the targets in different sectors of the economy. There would be a shortfall of three hundred and fifty billion rupees in the FBR tax collection target of 2‚381 billion for the outgoing year.

The target for investment was fourteen point nine per cent but the country is likely to achieve fourteen point two per cent by the close of the year. Foreign inflows were projected at one point eight billion dollars but these remained eight hundred million dollars.

Budgetary deficit was targeted at four point seven per cent but it would be around eight point five per cent.

The Finance Minister said the agriculture sector grew by three point three percent as against the target of four point one percent and the services sector three point seven percent as against the targeted four point three percent. However‚ large-scale manufacturing was positive as its growth is expected to be two point eight percent as against two percent target for the year. Investment to GDP was targeted at thirteen point three percent but it would be twelve point six percent for the year.

Ishaq Dar said national savings also showed an upward trend as the growth rate was thirteen point five percent as against twelve point eight percent.

He said circular debt has assumed alarming proportions as it has crossed five hundred billion rupees despite injection of 1400 billion by the government as subsidies during the last about five years.

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Posted by Tahir Khan on Jun 11 2013. Filed under Business, Latest News, National, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.