Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has once again ruled out that Pakistan is heading towards default saying that “the country has assets worth trillions of dollars”.

The finance minister was talking to the media in Islamabad as the government is preparing to present the budget for the fiscal year 2023-24.

He said that some people want Pakistan to default, but “that is not going to happen at all”.

His statement came at a time when the government is about to end the ongoing International Monitory Fund (IMF) deal incomplete with over about $2.5 billion left to disburse from the $6.5 billion programme.

“We will make all the payments on time and the country will not default,” he said.

Sources said that Pakistan will be in ‘dire’ need of the new programme as the new fiscal year begins. The country will have to repay loans worth $24 billion of which around $11 billion will have to be paid by December.

The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz leader said that his party has taken the country on the path of development, but due to inflation, the common man has been burdened. “The promises made in the past have not been implemented.”

He blamed political instability as the “main reason” for the economic woes in the country.

“The country is facing many challenges, not all problems can be solved in one day,” he said. “Pakistan is a sovereign country and will not default.”