Pakistan on Wednesday successfully made payment of seventh instalment worth $394.3 million of Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) programme to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). On November 20, 2012, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) had issued an advice to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for payment of $394.3 million, in terms of Special Drawing Rights (SDR) amounting to SDR 258.4 million, to the IMF.
This amount has successfully been transferred into IMF account on Wednesday. Like previous payments seventh instalment of SBA has also been paid from foreign currency reserves held by the State Bank. With payment of this instalment, Pakistan till-date has paid SDRs 1,644 million equivalent $2.522 billion to the IMF, since February this year, while next instalment under SBA facility will be due at the end of February 2013.
Chief Spokesman SBP Syed Wasimuddin has confirmed that seventh instalment has been paid on Wednesday. Pakistan re-joined IMF programme in November 2008 to avoid default as the country's reserves reached less than $6 billion level in October 2008 followed by higher current account deficit.
Out of total $11.3 billion programme, the country received about $8.1 billion and failed to get the remaining $3.2 billion due to suspension of the IMF SBA due to delay in the implementation of fiscal reforms by the government. As per the agreement and repayment schedule agreed between Pakistan and the IMF, the country will repay $8.1 billion to the IMF till the end of fiscal year 2014-15.
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