ISLAMABAD, Aug 11 (APP): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday expressed satisfaction over the latest Gallup Business Confidence Index report, which shows that Pakistani businesses’ confidence in the national economy has reached its highest level in four years.
The prime minister termed the survey results “highly encouraging,” and noted that the economic direction score has improved to -2, the best since the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to the last quarter of 2024, a Prime Minister’s Office news release said.
“These results reflect the business community’s growing trust in the stability of the country’s political and economic environment. Thanks to our reform agenda, transparency has increased in the system, and the trading community is experiencing greater ease of doing business,”he said.
PM Shehbaz credited institutional reforms, the digitization of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), and structural changes in the energy sector for opening new avenues for trade and investment. He highlighted that improving macroeconomic indicators, better international credit ratings for Pakistan, and a decline in corruption and bribery were evidence of the government’s sound economic policies.
“The benefits of macroeconomic reforms have begun to reach the common man,” he added, reaffirming the government’s commitment to further enhancing institutional efficiency.
The Prime Minister also pointed to the Pakistan Stock Exchange’s recent milestone, where the KSE-100 Index crossed an all-time high of 147,000 points.
He lauded Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb and his economic team for their “commendable efforts” and reiterated that the government is working to expand consultation with the business community to provide more facilities for investors and entrepreneurs.