Pakistan's foreign reserves reach over $13B following crucial IMF deal

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan's foreign reserves have reached over $13 billion after a crucial financial assistance deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) late last month, the country's finance minister said on Thursday.

Of these $13 billion, some $8.6 billion are held by the country's central bank, while the remaining are with the commercial banks.

Islamabad received $1.2 billion of the total $3 billion IMF package on Thursday, raising the foreign funding to $4.2 billion in the last three days, Ishaq Dar said in a televised speech.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates injected $2 billion and $1 billion into Pakistan's troubled economy on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

With the fresh transfers, he said, the country's forex reserves will reach $13-14 billion by Friday. The State Bank of Pakistan will announce the exact numbers, he added.

Dar said that Islamabad would receive the remaining $1.8 billion from the IMF after two reviews in November this year and February 2024.

On June 30, Pakistan signed a nine-month IMF agreement under a standby arrangement for $3 billion, which was approved by the IMF board on Wednesday.

The deal will help shore up the South Asian country's depleting foreign reserves and contain a mounting balance of payment crisis.

Earlier, the SBP signed a $3 billion agreement with the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) for improving foreign exchange reserves.

The SFD had confirmed the rollover of a deposit worth $3 billion in September 2022 with a maturity date on Dec. 5 but Saudi Arabia extended the term on Dec. 2.