President Asif Ali Zardari has summoned separate sessions of the National Assembly and the Senate on June 5 to announce the federal budget for the fiscal year (FY) 2026-27.

According to an official press release issued by the Presidency on Friday, the NA has been summoned at 5pm on June 5, while the Senate session is scheduled for 6pm.

Meetings of the Annual Plan Coordination Committee (APCC) and the National Economic Council (NEC) — forums which review economic and development performance during the outgoing FY and set targets for the following year — are scheduled in the first week of June.

The schedule hints that presentation of the federal budget to parliament may slip to the second week of June from the first week, as earlier contemplated by the authorities concerned.

The government is set to approve a consolidated national development programme of more than Rs3.5 trillion and a macroeconomic framework envisaging an economic growth rate of 4.1 per cent with an elevated inflation rate of 8.5pc for FY2026-27.

Last week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded its visit to Pakistan, with discussions focusing on the “budget strategy” for the next FY and economic developments.

Earlier this month, the government denied a report that Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who has previously served as the finance czar, had been handed over the budget-making process.

“The story incorrectly portrays the constitution of a high-level review committee by the prime minister as a ‘handover’ of the budget-making process from the Finance Division or as a ‘sidelining’ of the finance minister,” the finance ministry asserted.