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    <title>Aaj TV English News - Business &amp; Economy</title>
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    <language>en-Us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright 2026</copyright>
    <pubDate>Mon, 06 Apr 2026 13:02:29 +0500</pubDate>
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      <title>Pakistan shares hit fresh record after new IMF deal</title>
      <link>https://english.aaj.tv/news/330369850/pakistan-shares-hit-fresh-record-after-new-imf-deal</link>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Pakistan’s benchmark share index rose 1.44% on Monday to hit a record high after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistan reached a staff level agreement (SLA) for a $7 billion, 37-month loan program.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The deal caps negotiations that started in May after Islamabad completed a short-term, $3 billion program that helped stabilize the economy and avert a sovereign debt default, and set challenging revenue targets in its annual budget to help it win approval from the IMF.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The benchmark share index has almost doubled since Pakistan signed its last SLA for the $3 billion standby arrangement, and is up more than 10% since Pakistan presented its annual budget.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;“$7 billion was pretty much expected. I think the markets will celebrate this SLA this week, because it is a short week with two days off,” said Adnan Sheikh, assistant vice president of research at Pak Kuwait Investment Company.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;“The market has grown used to the IMF deal being a highly politicized, news event and the IMF asking Pakistan to do more. This time it was a silent agreement between the government and the IMF staff,” said Sheikh.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;He added that the market is now expecting another interest rate cut by the central bank, despite a blip in inflation because of budget measures, and expects inflows of $2-3 billion during the month.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The IMF has said that the SLA agreement is subject to approval by its Executive Board and the timely confirmation of necessary financing assurances from Pakistan’s development and bilateral partners.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This would include rollovers or disbursements on loans from Pakistan’s long-time allies Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The new bailout is aimed at cementing stability and inclusive growth in the crisis-plagued South Asian country, the IMF said in a statement.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Pakistan has been plagued by crippling boom-and-bust cycles for decades, leading to 22 IMF bailouts since 1958 and is currently the IMF’s fifth-largest debtor, owing $6.28 billion as of July 11, according to IMF data, opens new tab.&lt;/p&gt;
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      <content:encoded xmlns="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"><![CDATA[<p><strong>Pakistan’s benchmark share index rose 1.44% on Monday to hit a record high after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistan reached a staff level agreement (SLA) for a $7 billion, 37-month loan program.</strong></p>
<p>The deal caps negotiations that started in May after Islamabad completed a short-term, $3 billion program that helped stabilize the economy and avert a sovereign debt default, and set challenging revenue targets in its annual budget to help it win approval from the IMF.</p>
<p>The benchmark share index has almost doubled since Pakistan signed its last SLA for the $3 billion standby arrangement, and is up more than 10% since Pakistan presented its annual budget.</p>
<p>“$7 billion was pretty much expected. I think the markets will celebrate this SLA this week, because it is a short week with two days off,” said Adnan Sheikh, assistant vice president of research at Pak Kuwait Investment Company.</p>
<p>“The market has grown used to the IMF deal being a highly politicized, news event and the IMF asking Pakistan to do more. This time it was a silent agreement between the government and the IMF staff,” said Sheikh.</p>
<p>He added that the market is now expecting another interest rate cut by the central bank, despite a blip in inflation because of budget measures, and expects inflows of $2-3 billion during the month.</p>
<p>The IMF has said that the SLA agreement is subject to approval by its Executive Board and the timely confirmation of necessary financing assurances from Pakistan’s development and bilateral partners.</p>
<p>This would include rollovers or disbursements on loans from Pakistan’s long-time allies Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China.</p>
<p>The new bailout is aimed at cementing stability and inclusive growth in the crisis-plagued South Asian country, the IMF said in a statement.</p>
<p>Pakistan has been plagued by crippling boom-and-bust cycles for decades, leading to 22 IMF bailouts since 1958 and is currently the IMF’s fifth-largest debtor, owing $6.28 billion as of July 11, according to IMF data, opens new tab.</p>
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      <category>Business &amp; Economy</category>
      <guid>https://english.aaj.tv/news/330369850</guid>
      <pubDate>Mon, 15 Jul 2024 17:15:14 +0500</pubDate>
      <author>none@none.com (Reuters)</author>
      <media:content url="https://i.aaj.tv/large/2024/07/15121459a2727db.jpg?r=121539" type="image/jpeg" medium="image" height="905" width="1400">
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        <media:title>The IMF programme was engulfed by uncertainty over the last few weeks. File photo
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