The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said it has reached a staff-level agreement with Pakistan on the third review of its Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the second review of its Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF), paving the way for a disbursement of about $1.2 billion.
A day earlier, the IMF shared the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) with Pakistani authorities after finalizing key contours of the 2026–27 federal budget. The Fund also urged more frequent adjustments in domestic fuel prices.
Pakistan and the IMF exchanged draft versions of the MEFP as part of negotiations to complete the third review and secure the next tranche under the $7 billion EFF program, along with support under the $1.4 billion RSF, local media reported.
As part of the discussions, the IMF sought a credible fiscal framework for the 2026–27 budget, including a Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) tax collection target of Rs15.08 trillion.
For the current fiscal year ending June 2026, the FBR’s target has been revised downward to Rs13.4 trillion, from an earlier Rs13.79 trillion. The target had previously been cut from Rs14.13 trillion.
The IMF has also called on Islamabad to increase the frequency of petroleum, oil and lubricant (POL) price adjustments to better reflect global market fluctuations. The government recently shifted from fortnightly to weekly revisions.
Officials said discussions are ongoing on the exact mechanism for further adjustments, with no final decision yet on whether prices would be revised more than once a week.
Muhammad Luqman is Associate Editor at Views News Now. He writes on wide-ranging issues including economy, South Asia, the Middle East, agriculture, economy and innovation. Luqman has worked some of the leading news organizations and won acclaim for his original and research-based works.
