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KARACHI: Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, in his budget speech on Friday, announced that the government has expanded the Export Refinance Scheme (EFS) to Rs88 billion, meaning the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will allocate more subsidised capital to help local businesses in the next fiscal year.
The government has been struggling to improve exports but has been unable to achieve the $60bn target. In the macroeconomic framework for 2026-27, the government set the combined export target at $44.2bn — $32.9bn in merchandise and $11.3bn in services exports.
The EFS allows exporters to secure low-interest working capital, thereby lowering their cost of production, helping them compete more aggressively in global markets and boosting Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves.
As a pro-export policy signal, the prime minister at the beginning of this calendar year announced a series of relief measures, including targeted incentives for exporters and broader cost relief for the industrial sector. The measures were viewed as a positive signal for exporters and investors alike. While the initiatives were expected to ease financing conditions and reduce operational costs.
