Finance ministry's economic report indicates agricultural loss amid floods

• Finance ministry reports says agricultural loss due to damaged crops.
• Sugarcane production reduced by 8%, as per report.
• FBR returns increased by 17%.

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Finance Sunday released its monthly economic report highlighting the need for a strong economy to stabilise the currency.

According to the report, climate-induced flooding across Pakistan has destroyed agriculture resulting in a decrease in the production of major crops. Sugarcane production has been reduced by 8%, rice by 40.6%, and cotton by 24.6%, while the target of wheat production has been set at 28.37% million tons.

The finance ministry's report further states that inflation was at 25.1% from July to September, which was at 8.6% during the same months in the previous year.

The budget deficit from July to September, as per the report, was Rs672 billion rupees, increasing by 45.4% in the financial year's first quarter. However, during the same period in 2021, the budget deficit stood at Rs462 billion.

As per statistics, the Federal Board of Revenue's returns increased by 17% in the first quarter of the financial year. From July to September, exports increased by 5.5%, imports decreased by 7.9%, the current account deficit was $2.2 billion, remittances stood at 3.6%, and total investments decreased by 83.7%.

Moreover, the finance ministry's report also stated that the State Bank's reserves were $8.884 billion as of October 26. The overall economic condition in the report, however, projects betterment.