Finance ministry's economic report indicates agricultural loss amid floods
Report stresses on need for strong economy to ensure currency stabilisation
- Finance ministry reports says agricultural loss due to damaged crops.
- Sugarcane production reduced by 8%, as per report.
- FBR returns increased by 17%.
ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Finance Sunday released its monthly economic report highlighting the need for a strong economy to stabilise the currency.
According to the report, climate-induced flooding across Pakistan has destroyed agriculture resulting in a decrease in the production of major crops. Sugarcane production has been reduced by 8%, rice by 40.6%, and cotton by 24.6%, while the target of wheat production has been set at 28.37% million tons.
The finance ministry's report further states that inflation was at 25.1% from July to September, which was at 8.6% during the same months in the previous year.
The budget deficit from July to September, as per the report, was Rs672 billion rupees, increasing by 45.4% in the financial year's first quarter. However, during the same period in 2021, the budget deficit stood at Rs462 billion.
As per statistics, the Federal Board of Revenue'sreturns increased by 17% in the first quarter of the financial year. From July to September, exports increased by 5.5%, imports decreased by 7.9%, the current account deficit was $2.2 billion, remittances stood at 3.6%, and total investments decreased by 83.7%.
Moreover, the finance ministry's report also stated that the State Bank's reserves were $8.884 billion as of October 26. The overall economic condition in the report, however, projects betterment.