KARACHI: Governor of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Jameel Ahmad said on Friday that the economy has stabilised significantly over the past three years, with foreign exchange reserves rising from $3 billion to $17 billion and remittances expected to exceed a record $41 billion this fiscal year.
Speaking at an interactive session during his visit to the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), the SBP governor said economic conditions have improved markedly since 2023, when businesses faced severe import restrictions and difficulties in opening letters of credit (LCs).
“Today, average monthly imports have crossed $5 billion compared to nearly $3 billion three years ago, while the LC situation has improved substantially,” he said.Ahmad said reforms introduced by the central bank, along with action against hundi and hawala operations, had contributed to stabilising the economy and strengthening foreign exchange reserves.
He said the current account remained in surplus during the first nine months of FY26 and projected the overall deficit to remain between zero and 1.0 per cent. “Pakistan’s external account is now in a much stronger and healthier position,” he added.
On economic growth, the governor said the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) has estimated GDP growth at 3.7 per cent during the first nine months of the current fiscal year, while the SBP projected annual growth between 3.75 per cent and 4.75 per cent. He cautioned that global uncertainty and oil price movements could affect growth in the final quarter of FY26.
Ahmad said inflation could temporarily rise above 7.0 per cent in the last quarter of FY26 but reiterated the SBP’s commitment to maintaining medium-term inflation within the 5-7 per cent range.
Highlighting the central bank’s focus on small and medium enterprises (SMEs), he said SME financing had increased from Rs491 billion in June 2024 to Rs882 billion by December 2025, with a target of Rs1.5 trillion by June 2028.
Discussing exports, he said lower international commodity prices had affected export earnings. Rice exports, which supported export growth last year, had declined by nearly $1 billion due to falling global prices. Total exports were estimated at around $30 billion this year compared with $32 billion last year, he added.
The SBP governor also said designs for new currency notes are finalised and have been s0ent to the federal cabinet for approval. He added that work is also under way on a regulatory framework for virtual assets in Pakistan.
Earlier, Businessmen Group Chairperson Zubair Motiwala said overseas Pakistanis have played a key role in supporting the economy through remittances, while KCCI President Rehan Hanif praised the SBP’s handling of the economic crisis in 2023. Hanif also urged the central bank to address valuation-related issues faced by businesses, saying commercial banks were increasingly influencing trade valuation benchmarks.
