Pakistan has secured nearly $12 billion in foreign loans during the first eight months (July-February) of the current fiscal year, with the government aiming to surpass its $19.2 billion target by June 30.
According to the data released by the Economic Affairs Division (EAD), a significant portion of these inflows—$6 billion—came from rollovers by China, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, while fresh loans and grants amounted to $5.95 billion, about 25% lower than the same period last year.
Total Foreign Economic Assistance (FEA) recorded in 8MFY25 stood at $4.95 billion, down 26% from $6.68 billion in the same period last year. This figure excludes the $1 billion disbursed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in October 2024 under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF), as the central bank accounts for it separately.
Pakistan’s external financing during this period included $3 billion in Saudi rollovers, $2 billion from the UAE, and $1 billion from China. Additionally, China rolled over another $2 billion earlier this month, bringing its total rollovers to $3 billion.
The government has an annual rollover portfolio of approximately $12.7 billion from these three countries, which remains critical given the country’s net international reserves (NIR) deficit.
In February 2025, the EAD reported total inflows of $365 million, significantly lower than the $830 million recorded in January. Out of the $4.95 billion secured so far, $2.74 billion was allocated for budgetary support, while $2.2 billion was designated for project financing.
In contrast, during the same period last year, budgetary support stood at $5.14 billion, with project loans totaling $1.8 billion.
Multilateral institutions disbursed $2.49 billion during 8MFY25, lower than the $3.8 billion received in the previous year. Bilateral disbursements also fell sharply, with only $334 million secured compared to $949 million last year.
However, there was a slight recovery in commercial lending, with Pakistan receiving $500 million from UAE-based foreign commercial lenders. The government had initially budgeted $3.8 billion in commercial loans for the fiscal year, but delays in the IMF program have slowed inflows.
Pakistan has also projected $1 billion from international bonds and $9 billion from bilateral partners, including a $5 billion time deposit from Saudi Arabia and $4 billion in China’s SAFE deposits. These funds are essential for bridging the country’s external financing gap as part of the IMF agreement.
Meanwhile, overseas Pakistanis contributed $1.3 billion through Naya Pakistan Certificates, more than doubling the $590 million recorded in the previous year.
Among multilateral lenders, the Asian Development Bank led with disbursements of $1.098 billion, though this was lower than the $1.93 billion recorded in 8MFY24. The World Bank provided $849 million over the same period.
