Industrialists propose industry-focused budget

Eminent industrialists in Karachi have urged the government to implement proposed budgetary measures for the federal budget 2024-25 to drive industry-led economic growth in the country. They stressed the importance of halting deindustrialisation and promoting reindustrialisation. In the budget proposals submitted to key stakeholders including the prime minister, finance minister, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) governor, and Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman, Muhammad Kamran Arbi, President of the Site Association of Industry (SAI), highlighted that the industrial sector contributes 20% to 22% to the GDP and shoulders over 50% of the national tax burden. Arbi cautioned against jeopardising the vital industrial sector, stating, “For increasing the tax-to-GDP ratio, the government should bring untaxed and undertaxed sectors into the tax net. Overburdening the crucial industrial sector conflicts with Pakistan’s economic development goals.”