Pakistan, June 28 -- ISLAMABAD - Pakistan's state-owned enterprises (SOEs) continue to bleed financially, with total accumulated losses and unfunded pension liabilities now crossing Rs7.5 trillion. This amount is nearly three times the defence budget and over seven times the national development budget for the current fiscal year.

The Ministry of Finance revealed these alarming figures during a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on State-Owned Enterprises (CCoSOEs), chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. The Finance Division's report showed that SOEs suffered losses of Rs342 billion in just six months from July to December 2024, adding to their already staggering total loss of Rs5.8 trillion.

Despite multiple hikes in electricity...