Pakistan's foreign reserves drop to $13.24 billion

KARACHI: The foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank fell by $342.1 million during the week ending on October 7, 2022, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Thursday.

According to the stats issued by the SBP, the country’s foreign reserves dropped by $340 million to $13.24 billion. The reserves in the SBP dropped by $303 million to $7.59 billion.

Total liquid foreign reserves held by the country stood at $13.25 billion, said the SBP on Thursday. Net foreign reserves held by commercial banks amounted to $5.649 billion.

“During the week ended on October 7, 2022, SBP’s reserves decreased by $303 million to $7.596 billion,” said SBP. “This decrease was entirely attributed to external debt repayments, which included repayment of a commercial loan and interest payment on Eurobonds.”

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In September, SBP’s reserves had increased as the central bank received the $1.2-billion tranche from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).