Crisis alert
Islamabad
The total liquid foreign reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan fell $294 million to $5.821 billion the latest data showed Thursday due to debt servicing. This leaves Pakistan with an import cover for merely 1.10 months as its beleaguered government struggles to meet the country’s unwieldy external financing needs. Foreign exchange reserves held by commercial banks stood at $5.885 billion as of December 23. Pakistan direly needs funds to cover its current account deficit and debt obligations, for which over $30 billion is needed in external financing this fiscal year.
