ADB links support with IMF’s clean chit

Given my interactions with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the dialogue decisiveness of the current government, I feel very hopeful that there will be a successor programme from the Fund,” said the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Country Director for Pakistan Yong Ye in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of ADB’s 57th Annual Meeting in Tbilisi this week. Tacitly indicating that support from ADB would only be possible with a clean chit from the Fund, Mr Ye expressed cautious optimism for the economy. Highlighting the uncertainties from last year, Mr Ye termed the IMF agreement announced in June as a ‘miracle’. Since then, however, he said, the caretaker government did a good job stabilising the economy under the Fund’s Stand-By Arrangement. More importantly, he added, with the IMF agreement in place, the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves increased from $4.4 billion to over $9bn in the week ending on May 3.