Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, praised the current account surplus reported on Friday for the third straight month.
According to a press release from the prime minister, the ongoing surplus in the current account for October, November, and December 2024 demonstrated that economic measures were headed in the correct direction.
He pointed out that the first half of the current fiscal year showed a $1.2 billion surplus.
The prime minister further said, “We are actively working to further increase the surplus in the current fiscal year.”
Positive economic statistics, he said, showed that the business community was becoming more confident in the administration and its economic policies.
He stated that initiatives like “Uraan” will help to bolster the country’s economy.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Friday directed the relevant authorities to install international standard cargo scanning system in Karachi and other key trading hubs to tackle the issue of smuggling in the country.
“The old systems of tracking, tracing and scanning in the trading hubs must be replaced with the new systems equipped with modern technology,” the prime minister said while chairing a review meeting regarding transit cargo and tracking system.
He also issued directives to ensure the third party validation of quality of the cargo tracking services providing entities.
The prime minister noted that with the improvement of the tracking system, smuggling had significantly reduced.
He highlighted that due to steps taken to stop smuggling, sugar export worth US$211 million to Afghanistan became possible.
PM Shehbaz pointed out that Pakistan would become center of transit trade for other regional countries due to an integrated communication system and improved cargo tracking,.
The meeting was attended by Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb, Minister for Economic Affairs Division Ahad Khan Cheema, Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and senior government officials.
Moreover, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Friday felicitated the entire nation including the scientists and engineers on successful launch of the country’s first indigenous Electro-Optical (EO-1) satellite from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China.
The prime minister, in a social media post on his X timeline, “Soaring higher and higher! Proud moment for the nation as Pakistan proudly launches its first indigenous Electro-Optical (EO-1) satellite from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China.”
PM Shehbaz underscored that from predicting crop yields to tracking urban growth, EO-1 was a leap forward in the nation’s journey towards progress.
Acknowledging the Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO)’s efforts, the prime minister said that the successful satellite launch spearheaded by SUPARCO demonstrated the nation’s growing capabilities in space science and technology.
“Congratulations to our scientists and engineers for their dedication and a great team effort!,” he said.
