Pakistan’s foreign exchange holdings increase by $66 million

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said on Thursday that Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank increased by $66 million to $3.258 billion in the week ending February 17.

Its liquid foreign reserves, according to the SBP, were $8.726 billion. Pakistan, whose $350 billion economy is in economic distress, just has enough foreign exchange reserves to cover three weeks’ worth of imports and is experiencing a balance of payments crisis.

After a contract with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is finalised, which is probable this month, Islamabad anticipates incoming external finance.

If the IMF agreement is completed and approved by its board, $1 billion in funding will be released, which will also open the door to future bilateral and multilateral inflows.

Dawn was informed by a reliable source that Pakistan and the IMF would sign the staff-level agreement on February 28.

The IMF executive board meeting, which is anticipated to take place in the first week of March, will come next, the source claims.

A $700 million credit facility for Pakistan has been authorised by the board of the China Development Bank, according to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar’s announcement on Wednesday. The money, which would support the nation’s declining foreign exchange reserves, was anticipated to arrive at the central bank this week, according to the minister.