Foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) decreased by $397 million due to external debt repayments during the week ended on July 19 2024.
According to the latest data released by the central bank, the total liquid foreign reserves held by the country stood at $14.33 billion as of July 19, 2024.
The break-up of the foreign reserves position shows foreign reserves held by the SBP stood at $9.027 billion while net reserves held by commercial banks recorded $5.308 billion.
Pakistan faces significant challenges due to high debt servicing obligations on both domestic and external fronts. The requirement to raise $24 billion for external debt servicing in FY25 has complicated the situation for economic managers, who have already utilised most available inflow sources.
Finance Minister Mohammad Aurangzeb is currently in negotiations with Chinese investors to reschedule loans. The Prime Minister has also submitted a letter to the Chinese government for consideration.
The country is seeking to extend the debt repayment period from 10 to 15 years, which could potentially reduce the foreign currency outflow.
