ISLAMABAD: Pakistan recorded a budget surplus of Rs542 billion during the first half (July–December) of the fiscal year 2025-26, marking a sharp turnaround from a deficit of Rs1.54 trillion in the same period last year, official data released by the Ministry of Finance.
According to the fiscal operations report, total revenues reached Rs10.68 trillion, while expenditures stood at Rs10.14 trillion, resulting in the overall surplus. The government also achieved a primary surplus of Rs4,105 billion, equivalent to 3.2% of gross domestic product (GDP), compared to Rs3,600 billion or 3.1% of GDP in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.
Despite the improvement in fiscal balance, debt servicing remained the largest expenditure head, significantly exceeding both defense and development spending.
During the first six months of CFY26, debt servicing consumed Rs3,563 billion, while defense spending stood at Rs1,044 billion and public sector development programme (PSDP) spending at Rs238 billion.
The report also highlighted a statistical discrepancy of Rs413.3 billion, slightly lower than Rs439.7 billion recorded in the same period last year. Punjab accounted for Rs144.4 billion of the total provincial discrepancy of Rs342 billion.
On the revenue side, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) collections amounted to Rs6,160 billion, while non-tax revenues reached Rs3,954 billion. Major non-tax contributors included State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) profits of Rs2,428 billion and petroleum levy collections of Rs823 billion. Other notable inflows came from carbon levy (Rs25.5 billion), PTA profits (Rs24.8 billion), oil and gas royalties (Rs61.1 billion), and passport fees (Rs26.7 billion).
Federal government net revenues stood at Rs6,392 billion, while total federal expenditure reached Rs7,029 billion, with current expenditure at Rs6,836 billion.
Major spending heads included domestic debt servicing of Rs3,089 billion, foreign debt payments of Rs474.3 billion, pensions (Rs504 billion), subsidies (Rs462.6 billion), and grants to provinces and others totaling Rs880 billion.
The strong fiscal performance reflects tighter expenditure controls and higher revenue mobilization, offering much-needed support to Pakistan’s macroeconomic stability.
