JULY 11, 2023
Finance Minister of Pakistan, Ishaq Dar on Monday said that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has received a deposit of $2 billion from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“This inflow has increased the forex reserves held by SBP and will accordingly be reflected in the forex reserves for the week ending 14 July 2023,” the Finance Minister tweeted.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in a tweet extended his gratitude to the leadership and people of Saudi Arabia for the $2 billion financial aid.
“I would like to especially thank my brother Saudi Crown Prince & Prime Minister His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman for ensuring this financial support to Pakistan,” said Sharif.
“This deposit will strengthen Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves. It reflects the growing confidence of our brotherly countries and the international community in Pakistan’s economic turnaround,” he added.
In April, Saudi Arabia made a commitment to provide financial assistance and subsequently awaited the arrival of the aid package from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) before depositing it into the State Bank of Pakistan.
This much-needed support will help bolster the central bank’s dwindling foreign exchange reserves, which had declined to a level barely sufficient to cover a month’s worth of regulated imports.
In a race against time, Islamabad managed to secure a crucial $3 billion IMF bailout on the final day of June.
Pakistan received a higher-than-anticipated $3 billion funding from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which will be disbursed in a nine-month period. This amount surpasses initial expectations for financial assistance.
Previously, the country had been awaiting the disbursement of the remaining $2.5 billion from a bailout package of $6.5 billion, which was agreed upon in 2019.
Courtesy/Source: Business Today
