Saudi Arabia will invest $1 billion in Pakistan to support the country’s economy, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Thursday.

"The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud - may God protect him - has directed to invest an amount of one billion dollars in the sisterly Republic of Pakistan, in confirmation of the Kingdom's position in support of the economy of the Republic of Pakistan and its brotherly people," the report said.

"This was confirmed during a telephone call received today by His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan bin Abdullah, Minister of Foreign Affairs, from His Excellency the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Bilawal Bhutto Zardari."

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund aims to invest $3bn

The development comes after Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world, announced that it aims to invest about $3 billion in different sectors of Pakistan's economy.

The announcement was made during a visit to Doha by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who held official talks with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani after a meeting with the QIA.

“His Highness stressed the importance of the brotherly and strategic relations between the two countries and their aspiration to enhance economic partnership by raising trade exchange and promoting investments through the Qatar Investment Authority,” the Emiri Diwan said.

The prime minister’s visit to Qatar precedes an International Monetary Fund meeting next week that is expected to approve more than $1 billion in financing that has been stalled since the beginning of the year.

Pakistan is in economic turmoil and faces a balance of payments crisis, with foreign reserves having dropped as low as $7.8 billion, barely enough for more than a month of imports. It is also dealing with a current account deficit, depreciation of the rupee against the US dollar and inflation that hit more than 24% in July.