Foreign exchange: SBP's reserves decrease another 2.03%, now stand at $13.7b

Decrease attributed to payments on account of external debt servicing


Our Correspondent January 18, 2018
Decrease attributed to payments on account of external debt servicing. PHOTO: AFP

KARACHI: Foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) decreased 2.03% on a weekly basis, according to data released by the central bank on Thursday.

The reserves have been falling continuously for the past five weeks.

On January 12, foreign currency reserves held by the central bank were recorded at $13,699 million, down $283.5 million or 2.03% compared to $13,982.5 million in the previous week.

The decrease in reserves was attributed to external debt servicing and other official payments.

Overall, liquid foreign reserves held by the country, including net reserves held by banks other than the SBP, stood at $19,771.5 million. Net reserves held by banks amounted to $6,072.5 million.

Foreign exchange: SBP's reserves down 0.88%, stand at $13.98b

Pakistan recently raised $2.5 billion by floating dollar-denominated sovereign bonds in the international market in a bid to shore up official reserves.

A few months ago, foreign currency reserves surged due to official inflows including $622 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and $106 million from the World Bank.

Earlier, the SBP received $350 million under the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) and made payments of $62 million for external debt servicing.

In January, the SBP made a $500-million loan repayment to the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), China.

COMMENTS (1)

Habibullah | 6 years ago | Reply No problem. In 1 year we can repaying all loans !!
Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ