Economy is in ‘good place’, says Finance Minister Aurangzeb amid global support

In a virtual address at the second edition of Pakistan International Maritime Conference and Exhibition in Karachi, Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Tuesday said that Pakistan is enjoying a moment of convergence between domestic economic stability and favorable international dynamics.

“Where we are as a country, we are in a good situation right now because there is a confluence of factors,” he said.

He pointed to what he described as “macroeconomic stability combined with geopolitical tailwinds” as the main drivers of this improved position.

Aurangzeb underlined that the country’s long-standing relationships with its partners can now be transformed from mere government-to-government commitments into tangible flows of trade and investment. “Our traditional partners, who have helped us through thick and thin… we find ourselves in a situation where we can now… move from government-to-government (G2G) discussions to trade and investment flows into the country,” he told the conference.

On the issue of global confidence in Pakistan’s economic management, Aurangzeb said that after a gap of two to three years, three major global rating agencies are now aligned in their opinion, reporting improvements this year and offering stable outlooks. “After a gap of two or three years, we have three global rating agencies that are completely aligned… in terms of the improvements we have seen over the course of this year, but also their outlook, which is stable for Pakistan’s economy,” he said.

He stated that the country is currently part of an International Monetary Fund (IMF) program and that the recently announced staff-level agreement was proof of international confidence in the Pakistani authorities.

Blue economy

Regarding the sectoral strategy, Aurangzeb described the “blue economy” as a possible turning point for Pakistan. He said that the sector currently represents approximately one billion dollars (0.4-0.5% of the Gross Domestic Product). [GDP]) and aims to scale significantly. “We are hovering between 0.4 and 0.5 percent of the national gross domestic product, which is roughly equivalent to $1 billion,” he said, adding that Pakistan’s “real potential” was as high as $3 trillion.

The minister also emphasized that policy coherence would be critical to achieving these goals. “As Finance Minister, I would like to assure you… that we are going to ensure that there is policy coherence. Whatever we say, we will see it throughout the cycle. So I think that will be a very important part of how we are going to take this discussion forward,” he said.

He outlined plans for seafood exports, which currently amount to about $500 million, to reach $2 billion in the next three to four years. “Reaching $2 billion in the next three or four years was a very achievable milestone,” he said.

Other strategic pillars identified included the modernization of ports and logistics, digitalisation, renewable energy and innovative financing such as blue bonds and blended financing.

The comments signal Pakistan’s intention to take advantage of a window of favorable external conditions and a domestic reform push to accelerate growth. However, ambitious goals and promises of sustained policy coherence will require careful execution, strengthened institutional frameworks and greater market confidence.