KARACHI: During the week that ended on January 20, the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) foreign exchange reserves fell to a new nine-year low of $3.678 billion.
Due to repayments on external debt, the SBP reported on Thursday that its forex holdings decreased by $923 million over the course of the week.
In light of rapidly decreasing SBP reserves, which are even insufficient to cover imports for three weeks, the government has practically caved in to the IMF’s requirements for the revival of the loan program.
Over 9,000 containers are stranded at the ports while they wait for clearance payment. Additionally, ships carrying essential commodities such as soyabean, LNG, and petroleum products are awaiting payment, but the government is seeking inflows.
A market-based dollar-rupee exchange parity and a high interest rate have been met by the government, and within a week, a 17 percent general sales tax on diesel and gasoline will likely be imposed.
The economy is in bad shape, but the situation on the outside is the worst.
The country’s total reserves decreased by $990 million to $9.5 billion, and the holdings of commercial banks decreased by $68 million to $5.8 billion during the week.
