Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb held a meeting today with a delegation from S&P Global Ratings comprising Mr. YeeFarn PHUA, Director, Sovereign Ratings, and Ms. Giulia Filocca, Associate Director, Sovereign Ratings, to discuss Pakistan's sovereign credit profile, macroeconomic outlook, and progress under the Government's comprehensive economic reform agenda.
During the meeting, the Finance Minister highlighted the significant improvement in Pakistan's macroeconomic fundamentals, emphasizing stronger economic growth, sustained fiscal consolidation, improved debt sustainability, and enhanced external sector resilience underpinned by a pro-growth and fiscally responsible Federal Budget FY2026-27. He noted that prudent economic management, disciplined policy implementation, and continued structural reforms have strengthened macroeconomic stability, resulting in lower inflation, higher foreign exchange reserves, a stronger external position, renewed investor confidence, and continued progress across key fiscal and external indicators despite a challenging regional and global environment.
The Finance Minister also underscored Pakistan's improving public debt profile, highlighting the sustained decline in the debt-to-GDP ratio, the slowest pace of central government debt growth in around 15 years, active debt management through liability management operations and debt buybacks, extension in the maturity profile of domestic debt, historically lower fiscal deficits, and record primary surpluses. He emphasized that these improvements, supported by stronger revenue mobilization and prudent expenditure management, are reinforcing fiscal sustainability and strengthening Pakistan's sovereign credit fundamentals.
The delegation was also briefed on the Government's structural reform agenda focused on taxation, energy, state-owned enterprises, privatization, governance, and public financial management to support sustainable, private sector-led and export-oriented growth. The Finance Minister highlighted that implementation of the Government's reform agenda, including reforms supported under the IMF's Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), remains firmly on track, with successful programme reviews and timely implementation of key reform benchmarks. He also highlighted Pakistan's continued engagement with the IMF, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and other development partners in advancing the country's long-term reform agenda.
The S&P Global Ratings delegation acknowledged Pakistan's progress in strengthening macroeconomic stability and appreciated the Government's commitment to fiscal discipline, debt sustainability, external resilience, and structural reforms. The delegation also held a constructive discussion with the Finance Minister and his team on Pakistan's medium-term economic outlook, reform priorities, and measures aimed at further strengthening the country's sovereign credit profile.
