Govt to Present Rs. 18.9 Trillion Federal Budget 2024-25 Today

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb will present the federal budget 2024-25 in parliament today. This will be a budget of Rs. 18.9 trillion, while a budget deficit of Rs. 9.8 trillion has been projected for the new fiscal year. The government has sidelined Rs. 9.7 trillion for interest on loans and other payments. The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) aims to set a tax target of approximately Rs. 12.97 trillion. The federal Public Sector Development Program (PSDP) will get funds in the region of Rs. 1.5 trillion for development projects. Meanwhile, the defense budget may exceed Rs. 2.1 trillion. The income tax exemption threshold will likely be raised from Rs. 600,000 to Rs. 900,000 per annum. The budget also includes a petroleum levy target set at Rs. 1.08 trillion and a proposal to eliminate tax exemptions totaling Rs. 3.8 trillion across sales tax, income tax, and customs duties. Various income tax exemptions will be abolished to tighten rules around non-filers further. The government has set an inflation target of 12 percent and a GDP growth target of 3.6 percent. Non-filers will be forced to pay more, while tax exemptions will likely be withdrawn for the majority of sectors. This will likely affect the prices of various imported goods like cars, mobile phones, food, chocolate, milk, clothes, soaps, shampoos, hair curlers, make-up, perfumes, and lotions. Essential items like ghee, cooking oil, baby milk, sugar, tea leaves, and drinks will get costlier. Government employees will get a 10-15 percent boost in their salary, particularly young officers.