Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has announced that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has deposited $1 billion in Pakistan’s central bank, which will significantly boost the country’s declining foreign exchange reserves.
This deposit comes after a previous deposit of $2 billion from Saudi Arabia, resulting in a total increase of $3 billion in reserves. Minister Dar confirmed the deposit in a video message and mentioned that the improved reserves position will be reflected on July 14. These deposits were committed by the UAE and Saudi Arabia earlier this year and were crucial in securing financing assurances required by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Pakistan’s ninth review.
Although the ninth review was not successful, the government has obtained staff-level approval for a new nine-month $3 billion Stand-By Arrangement (SBA). The IMF Executive Board is expected to discuss Pakistan’s SBA agenda on July 12.
