The finance minister is pointing out the risk of daily loss of 120 billion rupees due to protests and strikes.

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s economy is facing heavy losses ahead of upcoming strikes, sit-ins, road closures that could lead to prolonged disruption of business activities.

Ahead of planned protests by Imran Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf, Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has warned that the economic fallout will extend beyond closed shops and blocked roads, threatening tax revenues, exports, investment and the country’s growth momentum, at a time when the government is trying to shift the economy towards sustainable growth.

According to estimates prepared in collaboration with the Economic Wing of the Planning Commission, the disruption could affect major sectors of the economy, with the services sector the most affected.

According to the finance minister, the service sector alone could suffer a loss of Rs 86 billion per day. This sector includes financial services, communications, transportation, retail and wholesale trade, hotels and other related activities, sectors that are highly dependent on uninterrupted movement of people, goods, payments and communications.

The industrial sector may face further losses of Rs 25 billion per day, disrupting construction, finished goods, raw materials and supply chain activities.

Meanwhile, agriculture could suffer an estimated loss of Rs 9 billion per day, mainly due to disruptions in transport, perishable goods, dairy supply chain and agricultural production. Together, the three sectors have an estimated daily turnover of Rs 120 billion, the finance minister said.

The disruption may also directly affect government revenue. FinMin said tax collections by the Federal Board of Revenue have increased by about 40 percent over the past two years, while the government continues efforts to expand the tax base. He said that if economic activities stop, the government may face a loss of 17 billion rupees in tax revenue.

For a government trying to shore up fiscal revenues, prolonged disruptions can therefore create a second economic shock that affects both private sector activity and public finances.

The minister said that the immediate burden of such disruptions would fall on common Pakistanis, especially daily wage workers, small shopkeepers and small businesses. For workers who rely on a daily wage, even a small disruption can mean an immediate loss of income, while small businesses can face declining sales, supply issues and higher operating costs.

Avoiding prolonged disruption, he argued, is not just a matter of economic statistics but is directly linked to people’s livelihoods.

The warning comes at a time when Pakistan is trying to move beyond economic stability and accelerate exports, investment and sustainable growth. For the current fiscal year, the government has set a target of $32.9 billion for merchandise exports, which is expected to grow by about 6 percent.

Aurangzeb said previous episodes of strikes and economic disruptions had already shown their potential impact, with normal economic activity sometimes taking weeks to resume.

The finance minister also pointed to the current situation in the Gulf and said that Pakistani exporters and businesses are already facing various challenges. Against this backdrop, he cautioned that additional domestic constraints could put further pressure on exports and economic growth.

He said that Pakistan has already endured difficult economic decisions and moved towards further stability. He said that the next challenge was to transform this stability into sustainable economic growth.

Before the PTI protest, Islamabad’s D Chowk was sealed with containers.

The post Finance Minister expressed fear of daily loss of 120 billion rupees due to protests and strikes appeared first on Daily Pakistan English News.

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