ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN / RankWire.AI / – Pakistan’s federal state-owned companies had a total debt of approximately $36.5 billion at the end of December 2025. This amount represents a 14.3% increase from the previous year, adding around $4.7 billion based on current exchange rates. The Ministry of Finance included these figures in its latest six-month report on federal SOEs. During the reporting period, total debt surpassed the $36 billion threshold. All dollar figures are calculated using the October 7, 2026 exchange rate.
Loss-making government enterprises incurred losses averaging about $10.1 million each working day over the six-month span. Meanwhile, government support through subsidies, grants, loans, and equity injections reached roughly $23.8 million daily. When annualized, these losses and support combined amount to approximately $9 billion. Notably, the daily government support was more than twice the daily loss estimate. These data highlight the persistent overlap between operating losses and direct fiscal aid across the federal enterprise sector.
The debt composition consisted of roughly $9.4 billion in foreign currency liabilities and about $11.2 billion in bank borrowings. Development loans from the government stood close to $7.6 billion, while unfunded pension liabilities reached about $7.2 billion. Sovereign guarantees exceeded roughly $7.6 billion, and the Central Monitoring Unit reported a 40% annual rise in foreign borrowing. Additionally, cash development loans grew by 25% during the same period, further increasing the government’s financial exposure.
Debt exposure spans multiple borrowing channels
A separate measure from the central bank yielded a much lower total, owing to different classifications and coverage. The State Bank of Pakistan reported public-sector enterprise debt and liabilities of about $10.7 billion for December 2025. Consequently, the finance ministry’s figure was roughly $25.7 billion higher, as it covers a broader range of obligations across the federal SOE portfolio. This scope difference means the two totals cannot be directly compared.
During the same period, Pakistan’s combined circular debt reached approximately $11.9 billion. The power sector’s gross circular-debt flow was around $1.35 billion in the first half of fiscal 2026, with distribution-company inefficiencies contributing roughly $405 million and under-recoveries adding about $112 million. State enterprises received about $813 million in equity injections during the six months, much of which was used to settle power-sector obligations.
Power sector pressures continue to strain public finances
The report identified power distribution as a significant source of losses within the state-enterprise portfolio. It linked these losses to technical deficiencies surpassing regulatory benchmarks, poor recovery rates, and ongoing circular-debt buildup. During the six-month period, circular debt increased by roughly $517 million. Infrastructure and energy entities accounted for much of this loss profile, while profitable state companies remained focused in sectors such as oil and financial services.
The review, covering July through December 2025 and released on October 5, 2026, shows federal SOE debt exceeding $36 billion, with nearly $12 billion in combined circular debt. Major components of the balance sheet include foreign-currency liabilities, bank loans, government lending, guarantees, and pension obligations. Despite substantial fiscal transfers during this period, debt continued to grow. These figures provide the most recent consolidated assessment of Pakistan’s state-enterprise debt load and the government’s ongoing financial support.