China rolls over another $600m loan for Pakistan

July 19, 2023 2:00 pm

Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said China has rolled over a $600 million loan to Pakistan, helping shore up the country’s foreign exchange reserves on the back of an IMF deal, reports Dawn.

This loan was an addition to over $5 billion in loans that longtime ally China has rolled over for Pakistan in the last three months, the prime minister said last week, helping the country prevent a default as negotiations to secure the IMF bailout dragged on.

Launching the Prime Minister’s Youth Sports Initiative in Islamabad today, Shehbaz Sharif said China’s Exim Bank provided the roll over, increasing the country’s foreign exchange reserves by $600 million.

“Our foreign exchange reserves are increasing but we want to do it not through loans but generating our income,” he said.

Pakistan bagged a last-gasp $3 billion bailout from IMF on 30 June, which later disbursed an initial upfront instalment of about $1.2 billion.

A further $2 billion financial support from Saudi Arabia and $1 billion from the UAE after the IMF deal has helped steady the economy, according to Pakistan’s Finance Minister Ishaq Dar.

With the recent transfers, the country’s forex reserves have reached over $13 billion.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the current account recorded a surplus of $334 million in June.