FBR falls Rs386bn short of revenue target
The Federal Board of Revenue missed its revenue collection target by nearly Rs386 billion in the first half of the current fiscal year, as a decline in imports and lower-than-expected inflation impacted tax receipts. According to provisional figures released on Tuesday, FBR collected Rs5.623 trillion between July and December against the target of Rs6.009tr. However, the collection is 26pc higher compared to the year-ago figure of Rs4.466tr. The shortfall is largely attributed to reduced tax collection from imports due to a slowdown in trade, sluggish manufacturing growth and unexpectedly low inflation, which has dropped to single digits in recent months. December alone saw a gap of Rs47bn, with Rs1.326tr collected against a target of Rs1.373tr. However, this represented a 35pc increase compared to Rs984bn collected in December last year.