ISLAMABAD - The government has admitted that it would miss the country’s exports, imports and current accounts deficit targets for ongoing financial year 2016-17 by a wide margin.

The government would miss the exports target by $3 billion during ongoing financial year 2016-17. Pakistan’s exports would reach $21.7 billion during current fiscal year as against the target of $24.8 billion, according to the official documents of the ministry of planning, development and reforms. Similarly, the government would also miss the target of keeping imports at $45.2 billion, as they would reach $50 billion, highest-ever level. Therefore, the trade deficit, gap between imports and exports, would widen by $28.3 billion during the year 2016-17 as compared to the target of $24 billion.

The documents showed that Pakistan’s current account deficit would also go to the higher level mainly due to subdued exports and growing imports. The current account deficit would reach $8.3 percent of the GDP as against the target of 4.5 percent of the GDP for the ongoing financial year. Pakistan’s current account deficit had widened to $7.247 billion during the first 10 months of the current fiscal year of 2016/17 as against $2.378 billion in the July-April period of 2015/16.

The government would achieve the inflation target of 6 percent. The inflation is likely to remain at below 5 percent during current fiscal year.

According to the documents, the government has kept the economic growth target at 6 percent for the next financial year 2017-18 as against 5.3 percent of the outgoing year. The government has also projected agricultural sector growth at 3.5 percent for the upcoming fiscal year. In agriculture sector, important crops are projected to grow by 2 percent and livestock by 3.6 percent in the year 2017-18.

The manufacturing sector is projected to grow by 6.4 percent in the fiscal year to come, as this sector showed 5 percent growth during outgoing year.  In manufacturing sector, large scale manufacturing would grow by 6.3 percent. Similarly, the services sector is estimated to show growth of 6.4 percent during next financial year.  

The government the other day had already admitted that Pakistan missed the economic growth target of 5.7 percent during current fiscal year, as National Accounts Committee noted that growth would remain at 5.3 percent.