Forex reserves rise to $15.04bn

KARACHI: Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves rose to $15.04 billion in the week ended on April 10 2010 from $14.96 billion the previous week, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said on Thursday. The overall reserves showed an increase of reserves held by the SBP that rose to $11.15 billion from $11.06 billion a week earlier, while those held by commercial banks declined to $3.89 billion from $3.90 billion, said the SBP. “There was a bilateral inflow of about $40 million to $45 million,” the SBP official said. Pakistan’s foreign reserves hit a record high of $16.5 billion in October 2007 but fell steadily to $6.6 billion by November 2008, largely because of a soaring import bill. An IMF emergency loan package of $7.6 billion in November 2008 helped avert a balance of payments crisis and propped up reserves to a greater extent. The IMF increased the loan to $11.3 billion in July and the central bank received a fourth tranche of $1.2 billion on December 28. The IMF’s executive board would meet before mid-April to review Pakistan’s loan after a meeting last month was postponed to enable a value-added tax law to be submitted to
the provincial assemblies.