KARACHI: The repatriation of profit and dividend by foreign investors declined sharply by 88 percent during the first quarter of this fiscal year (FY23), mainly due to economic slowdown.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Thursday reported that repatriation of profit and dividend contracted to $58.1 million during July-Sept of FY23 compared to $477.7 million in the same period of last fiscal year, a decrease of $419.6 million.

The detailed analysis revealed that foreign investors repatriated some $50.2 million as return on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) during the first quarter of this fiscal year against $451 million in the corresponding period of last fiscal year.

Similarly, during the period under review, repatriation from foreign portfolio investment narrowed to $8 million down from $26.7 million.

Economists attributed massive decline to slow economic activities in the country that resulted in big reduction in corporate earnings.

Month-on-month basis, foreign investors repatriated some $30 million in September 2022. This included $23.3 million as return on FDI and $6.3 million as return on FPI.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022