Connect with us

Business

South Korea defers Pakistan’s loan worth $19.91m

Published

1 year ago

on

  • Pakistan inks Debt Service Suspension Agreement with Korea.
  • This amount will now be repaid over a period of six years.
  • Pakistan has already signed 104 pacts with 21 bilateral creditors.

ISLAMABAD: In a sigh of relief, the Republic of Korea deferred Pakistan’s loan worth $19.911 million, under the G-20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) framework on Monday.

The cash-strapped country inked a Debt Service Suspension Agreement with Korea on Monday. This amount, initially had to be repaid between July and December 2021, will now be repaid over a period of six years (including a one-year grace period) in semi-annual instalments, said a statement issued by the Economic Affairs Division (EAD).

Due to the support extended by the development partners of Pakistan, the G-20 DSSI has provided the fiscal space which was necessary to deal with the urgent health and economic needs of the country.

The total amount of debt, that is to be suspended under the DSSI framework, covering the period of repayment from May 2020 to December 2021, stands at $3,686 million.

Pakistan has already concluded and signed 104 agreements with 21 bilateral creditors for the deferment of its debt repayments under the G-20 DSSI, amounting to $3,633 million.

The signing of the above-mentioned agreement brings this total to $3,653 million. Negotiations for the remaining agreements to be signed under the G-20 DSSI are ongoing.

It is pertinent to mention here, as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is reluctant to strike a staff-level agreement without seeking confirmation on the external financing gap, Pakistan, meanwhile, conveyed to the global creditor’s staff to conclude the ninth review otherwise budgetary framework for 2023-24 would not be shared.

The lingering differences between the IMF and Pakistan are heading towards an “unbreakable deadlock” whereby Pakistani authorities claim that the confirmation of $4 billion financing was shared with the IMF even with its full details and break-up but the Fund was playing “politics” by not moving towards striking an agreement despite passing six months period.

The ninth review was due in November 2022 but the two sides have not yet reached consensus.

The patience of Pakistani high-ups is running out as they argue before the IMF officials that Islamabad should be treated as a member of the Washington-based creditor, not a beggar.

The Pakistani authorities are hopeful that the current account deficit would remain surplus for April 2023 when the numbers would come out in the next few days.

The financing gap of $4 billion was fulfilled by getting confirmation as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia conveyed to the IMF that they were ready to provide an additional $2 billion in deposits and UAE $1 billion.

The World Bank is committed to providing $450 million RISE-II after fulfilment of four prior conditions and $250 million by the AIIB. Pakistan also received firm commitments for getting $350 million out of total Geneva pledges for flood-affected areas.

The only remaining amount is $1 billion from commercial banks and they are waiting for IMF’s deal.

The Pakistani officials argue that the external financing requirements had been fulfilled, so there was no justification for using delaying tactics to avoid signing the agreement.

Keeping in view this situation, the Ministry of Finance is all set to share the Budget Strategy Paper (BSP) with the federal cabinet without sharing it with the IMF in its meeting scheduled to be held today (Monday).

Related Topics:
Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Business

Trade Agreements Worth $10.70 Million Were Signed At Expo For Pakistan And Indonesia To Increase Their Trade With The Support Of SIFC

Published

20 hours ago

on

By

Through the assistance of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), Pakistan and Indonesia have reiterated their dedication to improving their economic and commercial ties.

The participation of a Pakistani trade delegation was made possible by Indonesia at a recent trade expo, which resulted in the formation of agreements and memorandums of understanding with a total value of 10.70 million $. In addition to retail items and automobile components, these agreements span industries such as coconut, cocoa, ginger, spices, and retail goods.

As a key step toward improving economic ties, particularly with the Sindh business community, the participation of the group was praised by Tegu Viveko, who is acting as the Consul General of Indonesia.

Abid Nisar, the head of the Pakistan-Indonesia business council, has stated his confidence regarding the possibility of enhanced relations between the two countries, highlighting the historical and cultural origins of the connection.

In its capacity as a member of the G20, Indonesia intends to assist both nations in maximizing the benefits of their partnership in order to achieve better economic stability.

Continue Reading

Business

Pakistan’s textile exports rose by 9.51% to $4.520 billion.

Published

4 days ago

on

By

Pakistan’s textile exports had a 9.51 percent increase in the first quarter of the current financial year (2024-25) compared to the same quarter of the previous year.

The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported that textile exports from the country amounted to US $4.520 billion during July-September (2024-25), compared to US $4.127 billion during the same period in the previous year (2023-24).

The textile goods that facilitated trade expansion comprised cotton fabric, whose exports rose by 10.20 percent to $523.63 million from $475.187 million, and knitwear, which experienced a 14.13 percent increase in exports to $1,268.908 million from $1,111.818 million.

Other commodities that experienced trade growth included bed wear, with exports increasing by 13.31 percent to $794.972 million from $701.570 million; towels, which rose by 7.04 percent to $261.316 million from $244.134 million; and tents, canvas, and tarpaulin, which grew by 5.43 percent to $28.796 million this year compared to $27.312 million last year.

The export of readymade garments increased by 23.17 percent to $996.831 million from $809.316 million; art, silk, and synthetic textiles rose by 15.79 percent to $96.482 million; made-up articles (excluding towels and bed wear) grew by 12.10 percent to $191.050 million from $170.422 million; and the export of other textile materials surged by 8.73 percent to $187.145 million from $172.112 million.

The textile commodities that had negative trade growth were cotton yarn, with exports decreasing by 48.45 percent, from $315.404 million to $162.579 million, while raw cotton exports fell by 100 percent from 6.621 million to zero during the reviewed months.

The export of yarn, excluding cotton yarn, decreased by 15.15 percent, from $10.096 million to $8.566 million.

In September 2024, textile exports experienced a year-on-year growth of 17.92 percent compared to the same month in the previous year.

Textile exports from the country in September 2024 amounted to US $1,604.481 million, compared to US $1,360.902 million in September 2023.

Textile exports from the country experienced a nominal decline of 2.40 percent in September 2024, compared to the $1,644.333 million reported in August 2024, according to PBS statistics.

Continue Reading

Business

PIA is designated as the official airline of IDEAS 2004.

Published

4 days ago

on

By

PIA has been designated as the official airline of IDEAS 2024. The PIA will utilise its aircraft for the promotion of IDEAS 2024.

In this context, the emblems of IDEAS 2024 have been affixed to two Boeing 777 aircraft and two Airbus planes of Pakistan International Airlines.

The International Defence Exhibition and Seminar (IDEAS) 2024 is scheduled to commence from November 19 to 22 at the Karachi Expo Centre.

The government of Pakistan places significant value on IDEAS. The show draws several delegates and is perceived as a means to promote their local arms trade.

The inaugural IDEAS launch took place in 2000, serving as a platform to promote Pakistan’s indigenous arms manufacturing industry while allowing international suppliers to provide solutions for the needs of Pakistan’s tri-services.

The event, consistently held at the Karachi Expo Centre, attracted forty-five foreign delegations in its inaugural year.

Continue Reading

Trending