Federal budget: KP traders, public show mixed reaction
PESHAWAR: The Federal budget for Financial Year 2025-26 has received mixed reaction from businessmen and industrialists, and the general public in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Reacting to the federal budget, some traders appreciated government initiatives through the budget and others expressed disappointment, stating that the budget is not as per their expectations.
Businessmen said the presentation of a growth-oriented, progressive and business-friendly budget was impossible under the current IMF-harsh conditions.
We were expecting a pro-business budget for next fiscal year, but it isn't as per their expectations, says Fazal Moqeem, in his prompt reaction after the presentation of the federal budget for next fiscal year.
Moqeem Khan hoped that the government would revisit the proposals that had been sent by SCCI and incorporate them in the next fiscal budget.
He was of the view that some initiatives were anti-business that would bring further stagnation and hamper efforts for revival of business and industries in the country.
However, he said SCCI expected the budget would be pro-business and industries.
No relief measures were proposed for revival of war-affected business and industries in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Moqeem remarked while talking to media persons.
However, he took the stance that a business-friendly budget only be made possible when the country would free under tight monitoring IMF-framework.
Commenting on the budget, FPCCI former president Ghazanfar Bilour said in the budget proposals, there was no mention and comparison of current GDP growth with previous fiscal year.
Ghazanfar Bilour said that incentives were only announced for the elite class while poor masses were further burdened with direct and indirect taxes, and the government has continuously adopted policy to make poor people further poorest and rich more richest, which is highly condemnable.
FPCCI former president also strongly objected to the FBR new rules, allowing unprecedented authorities to tax-collectors under the unilateral initiatives.
He said SCCI strongly condemned the black laws of FBR, and asked the government to immediately revisit these all rules which would prove further destructive for businesses and industries.
The Finance Minister was told that huge foreign exchange reserves had come into Pakistan in the last year but he must also explain how many investments were shifted from the country, Ghazanfar asked.
Haji Muhammad Afzal, who was also traders' leader and regional chairman of FPCCI said that the government took initiatives regarding small traders, which are unacceptable.
He made it clear that small traders will strongly protest against imposition of Point of Sale and other anti-traders initiatives and urged the government to reconsider initiatives and make them traders-friendly.
Haj Muhammad Afzal said SCCI had given proposals, which should be incorporated before the approval of the next fiscal budget.
SCCI senior vice president Abdul Jalil Jan, former FPCCI president Ghazafar Bilour, former president Haji Muhammad Afzal, Riaz Arshad, Malik Niaz Ahmad, Faiz Muhammad Faizi, members of the executive committee Aftab Iqbal, Ashfaq Ahmad, Nadeem Rauf, Shams Rahim, Adnan Nasir, Abdul Naseer, Sajjad Zaheer, former vice presidents Ejaz Khan Afridi, Javed Akhtar, traders leaders, representation of business community, industrialists and traders were present during the press conference.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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