New Delhi/Islamabad, April 4 (IANS) Facing mounting pressure, Pakistan has agreed to fully repay approximately “USD 3.5 billion” in deposits and loans to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by the end of April, after the Gulf nation sought the immediate return of the money. The development comes amid reports that the UAE asked for the swift repayment of the funds, reportedly due to regional tensions linked to the ongoing conflict in West Asia involving the US, Israel, and Iran.Multiple media repo…
Latest State Bank of Pakistan News & Updates
Washington, March 28 (IANS) The International Monetary Fund has reached a staff-level agreement with Pakistan that could unlock about $1.2 billion in fresh funding, as the country pushes ahead with fiscal tightening, structural reforms, and measures to stabilise inflation and growth.The agreement follows discussions between an IMF team and Pakistani authorities on the third review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and the second review under the Resilience and Sustainability Facility (RSF)….
Islamabad, March 24 (IANS) If the war in Iran does not end quickly, it could give the most devastating shock to Pakistan’s economy in the living memory, a report has stated. Pakistan remains most exposed to the war’s evolving fallout and its economy faces several fault lines considering that it imports majority of its fuel and food from West Asia and relies heavily on the remittances from Gulf. “The country’s misfortune is compounded by timing. This is not an economy facing a shock from a posi…
Kabul, Feb 25 (IANS) Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan reduced sharply in the first seven months of the current fiscal amid trade disruptions and political tensions, local media reported on Wednesday. According to the official data from the State Bank of Pakistan, exports to Afghanistan from Pakistan reduced by more than half compared to the same period last year. The value plunged from more than 550 million dollars to nearly 230 million dollars from July to January period, Afghanistan’s leading…
New Delhi, Feb 25 (IANS) There has been a drastic decline in private investment in Pakistan’s economy despite a reduction in interest rates as businesses face an uncertain economic environment due to high energy costs, regulatory unpredictability, and high taxes, according to an article in the Pakistani media.Data released by the State Bank of Pakistan showed that private sector bank borrowing plummeted by 39 per cent during the first seven months of FY2026, falling to Rs 666 billion from Rs 1…
New Delhi, Feb 18 (IANS) Pakistan’s economic situation is likely to start unfolding negatively in 2026, as geopolitical headwinds appear to be re-emerging, according to media reports.There is visible friction in Pakistan-UAE ties, evident from the monthly rollover of UAE deposits at a higher rate of 6.5 per cent, when the government had previously been confident of a two-year rollover at half the rate. Potential UAE investment in Fauji Foundation companies also remains in limbo, according to a…
New Delhi, Feb 11 (IANS) Pakistan’s plan to embrace a dollar‑linked stablecoin through a partnership with US crypto firm World Liberty Financial could accelerate the country’s dollarisation and undermine its macroeconomic stability, a new report has said.The report in the Daily Mirror said that a dollar-pegged stablecoin embeds a preference for the dollar as store of value and medium of exchange encouraging households to hold it as a state-tolerated alternative and move away from Pakistani r…
New Delhi, Feb 3 (IANS) Debt-ridden Pakistan’s recent request to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the rollover of $3 billion deposits reflects the heavy dependence of the country’s economy on borrowing from friendly countries and the IMF to stay afloat.This pattern of repeated rollovers and emergency funding from friendly states and the IMF has provided short-term breathing space but has also entrenched a fragile economic model that discourages domestic reform, distorts incentives, and per…
New Delhi, Feb 2 (IANS) The IMF has lowered Pakistan’s GDP growth forecast to 3 per cent from 3.2 per cent, which is worrying news for a country with a rapidly expanding population, according to an article in the Pakistani media.The large-scale manufacturing sector actually contracted by 1.25 per cent in the first five months of the ongoing fiscal, and exports appear to be slowing down. Aside from foreign loans and other external assistance, the only other thing Pakistan has been able to count…
New Delhi, Feb 2 (IANS) The Pakistan government has become addicted to IMF borrowing much like a drug addict and refuses to extricate itself from the self-made problem of creating cycles of foreign exchange shortages and bare sufficiency with IMF loans, according to a new report.These are accompanied by fiscal profligacy as seen in the government’s inability to contain needless expenditures and raise sufficient revenues to keep its debt at sustainable levels, according to an article by former …