Loan inflows remain $11.7bn in July-May, far below target

Pakistan received only about $11.7 billion in foreign loans and grants in the first 11 months (July-May) of outgoing FY24, far behind the annual target of $17.4bn. This is amid major slippages in raising international financial support, although it has met the revised target. According to official data released by the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MEA), the country received about $403 million in foreign assistance in May, up from $237m in April. It said the government could materialise about $7.547bn in foreign economic assistance (FEA) in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, almost 44 per cent of the annual budget target, amid limited borrowing avenues. This is in the wake of poor credit ratings and adverse conditions in the global financial markets despite the support of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).