Aaj Logo

Published 07 Mar, 2023 11:49pm

Pakistan assures IMF of friends support, but deal will still take time

Pakistan has assured the International Monetary Fund that it will receive support from friendly nations but the bailout is not likely to materialise in the month of March.

Finance ministry officials said on Tuesday that a good news is expected this week.

Officials said that all prior conditions givern by the Fund during its visit to Pakistan have been met. The Fund has also been told that funding froom friendly countries is likely to be received by June 30.

Reports said the IMF is scrutinising these details, especially those related to funding from international financial institutions.

The final approval for the bailout will be given by the IMF’s executive board, most likely in the first week of April.

The bailout tranche that will be released will be valued at $1.1 billion.

Fund officials visited Pakistan in the end of January this year and negotiations continued virtually even after the team left. However, progress has been slow despite the finance minister’s optimism of a deal ‘soon’.

Pakistan is facing historically high inflation while foreign exchange reserves are at their lowest in multiple decades.

Read Comments