Foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) increased $556 million to $3.81 billion, data released on Thursday showed. This is the third successive increase on a weekly basis and comes on the back of a commercial loan from the China Development Bank.
As of February 24, 2023, the country has $9.26 billion in net foreign reserves. The total amount of net foreign reserves held by commercial banks was $5.45 billion.
“SBP received $700 million as a disbursement from China for a GoP commercial loan during the week ending on February 24, 2023. SBP reserves climbed by US$ 556 million to US$ 3,814.1 million after accounting for repayments of external debt, according to the central bank.
Minor relief: SBP-held foreign exchange reserves rise $66mn, now stand at $3.26bn
The SBP’s foreign exchange reserves increased by $66 million last week to reach $3.26 billion.
The central bank’s reserves, which were approximately $18 billion at the beginning of 2022 but have significantly decreased since highlighting how critical it is for Pakistan to finish the upcoming assessment of its IMF programme.
The rupee has suffered a dramatic loss, closing on Thursday at a historic low of 285.09 against the US dollar, while the reserves are at a level that is less than one month’s worth of import cover.
