The government and commercial banks have agreed on a Rs268 billion debt restructuring plan for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA). This move, while shifting the burden of PIA’s inefficiency onto taxpayers, removes an irritant in its privatisation. The Ministry of Finance, abandoning its previous stance of not incorporating PIA debt into public debt, now commits to making principal and interest
Pakistan’s inflation rate slightly moderated to 28.3% in January 2024 but prices in all groups of commodities showed a double-digit rise, an outcome of frequent increases in energy prices to meet conditions of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) loan programme and supply disruptions. The 28.3% inflation was in line with the projection of the Ministry of Finance, which a day earlier signific
Inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), surged by 28.3 per cent year-on-year in January, according to data released from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) on Thursday. This is the last monthly CPI data before the general elections due on Feb 8 and comes as the country undertakes reforms linked to a $3 billion Standby Arrangement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) declined by $54 million to $8.216 billion during the week ended on Jan 26, announced the central bank on Thursday. However, the SBP succeeded to retain the total reserves above $8 billion. The reserves have been a crucial point for the country as it supports both the exchange rate and stability in the trade regime. The tr
The benchmark Karachi Interbank Offered Rate (Kibor) has started crawling up after the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) left its policy rate steady at an unprecedented 22 per cent in its last monetary review on Jan 29, said market sources. The Kibor six-month tenor rose by 24 basis points during the week reflecting growing concerns over the high interest rate and inflation. It was 20.82 per cent on