ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar said that the foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reached at the highest position since October 2022.
Taking to Twitter handle Friday, the finance minister said that the total liquid foreign reserves stood at $14.6bn. The minister also linked a news, saying the reserves held by the central bank currently surpassed $8bn.
•Total liquid foreign reserves at $14.06 billion.
•SBP’s reserve position highest since October 2022.AlhamdoLilah!https://t.co/J99FKNammM
— Ishaq Dar (@MIshaqDar50) July 21, 2023
It is pertinent to mention that in the weekly review ended July 7, the total reserves of the country were settled at 9,838.5 million ($9.8bn. However, after the collective inflow of $4.2bn reached from IMF, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates, the total liquid foreign reserves rose to US$ 14,065.3 million ($14.6bn). Among the total, the central bank’s reserves reached at $8,727.2 million.
The central bank, in a statement issued the previous day, said that SBP received US$ 2.0 billion from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, US$1.2 billion from International Monetary Fund, and US$ 1.0 billion from the United Arab Emirates.
In an earlier tweet, the minister pointed out that soon after the arrival of the incumbent government, Pakistan had total reserves around $14bn, and critics blamed Pakistan for fear of default due to repayments. However, the government managed to repay its due debts and also managed to recover in reaching $14bn again.
جب ہماری حکومت آئی تو ملکی ذخائر چودہ بلین ڈالر تھے۔ ہم نے فیصلہ کیا کہ ہم نے تمام بیرونی ادائیگیاں وقت پر ادا کرنی ہے اور پاکستان کو ڈیفالٹ نہیں ہونے دینا۔ ہم نے ہر بیرونی ادائیگی وقت پر کی اور تمام ادائگیاں کرنے کے باوجود پاکستانی ذخائر دوبارہ 14 ارب ڈالر پر الحمدللہ پہنچ چکے… pic.twitter.com/mDKokK2AB8
— Raza Butt 🎙️ (@SocialDigitally) July 21, 2023
It is worth mentioning here that after Pakistan finalized its SBA (Standby Arrangement) deal with the IMF, the fear of default vanished for the moment, but the country still required to come out of the financial quagmire while having some hard and fast decisions.
