Several important tax suggestions have arisen ahead of the budget for the next fiscal, including prospective relief measures for exporters, adjustments in import taxes and revisions to taxation on specific industries and items.

The administration said the proposed budget changes include incentives to encourage exports. It called for the abolition of the one per cent advance tax now imposed on exporters.

The plans also see a fall in import duty on cosmetic products, with the duty on imported beauty items possibly coming down from 44 percent to 40 percent.

Imported machinery and equipment used by health and fitness establishments, beauty parlours and medical clinics would also be tax-exempt.

If authorised, import levies on products such as sunblock, sunscreen, shaving cream, aftershave and lotions might be cut, making such items possibly cheaper.

The budget recommendations also seek to make it mandatory for retail pricing to be printed on products such as infant formula milk, ketchup, ghee, cooking oil and tea leaves. The measure is designed to improve the collection of sales taxes on food purchases.

The government also plans to increase climate levy on petroleum items and withdraw tax exemptions offered for combined districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The proposal allows the climate levy on petroleum products to be hiked from Rs2.5 per litre to Rs5 per litre.

The measures are recommended as part of the budget planning process and must be approved before they take effect.

Market sources have reported sharp spikes in solar panel costs across the board ahead of the introduction of the next fiscal year’s budget.

Each solar panel’s price has gone up by Rs7,000 to Rs9,000, according to market sources. The cost of a 585-watt panel has gone up from Rs18,000 to Rs27,000.

Similarly, the price of a 645-watt solar panel has increased from Rs22,000 to Rs31,200 while a 720-watt panel now costs Rs33,500 as opposed to Rs25,000. Traders also cautioned that inverter costs may soar in the days ahead.

The price hike comes ahead of the government budget where a proposal has reportedly been made to increase the General Sales Tax (GST) on solar panels from 10 percent to 18 percent. But even though the proposal has not been implemented yet, costs of solar panels have already soared on the market.

— The current Iran-US war has not only rattled the global energy markets and the international economy, but has also severely harmed Pakistan’s trade with shipments to Middle Eastern countries nosediving by as much as 70 percent.

Official documents obtained by Dunya News revealed that Pakistan had a substantial fall in exports in March and April. Exports to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries plummeted about 70 percent in March alone, from more than $315.1 million in March 2025 to $95.4 million in the same month in 2026.

The downturn continued in April albeit at a reduced pace, with shipments to GCC countries falling by more than 23 percent. April 2025 saw Pakistan send commodities worth $200 million to the region, while in April 2026, it exported goods worth $152.4 million.

The GCC bloc includes the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.

March saw the UAE suffer the biggest loss in exports among member states, down 74 percent. Exports to Saudi Arabia decreased 56 percent, to Qatar by 64 percent and to Oman by 85 percent. While shipments to Kuwait fell 21 percent, with Bahrain recording a drop of 85 percent.

The violence has affected sea and air transport lines and raised prices for shipping and logistics, the Ministry of Commerce said. This has impacted the UAE hard because of the breakdown in its logistical network.

Pakistan is significantly reliant on the UAE’s Jebel Ali Port for regional trade, with approximately 80 percent of its trade with GCC countries moving through the key transit centre.

Trade experts worry that prolonged instability in the region could result in higher shipping insurance prices, slower flow of cargo and a further burden on Pakistani exporters already suffering rising production and transportation charges.

Analysts also see wider economic implications for Pakistan in case of lingering tensions, including pressure on foreign exchange earnings and trade balances, as the Middle East is a major destination for Pakistani exports and a key source of economic activity linked to overseas workers and regional trade.