Pakistan’s total debt rises to Rs54.94 trillion in Jan 2023: SBP

Pakistan’s economic crisis is getting worse with every passing day, as the latest report issued by the State Bank of Pakistan stated that the country’s overall debt rose sharply by 38.1% to Rs54.94 trillion by the end of January 2023 as compared to the year-ago period.

According to the report released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Islamabad’s total debt has swelled to Rs54.94 trillion. The report further mentioned that the overall debt increased by Rs3.94 trillion in December 2022.

Pakistan’s foreign debt was Rs20.68 trillion in January 2022, the SBP report said.

The report said the rise in debt could be attributed to massive devaluation in the local currency against the United States dollar (US Dollar).

Meanwhile, cash-strapped Pakistan has communicated to the IMF that it has requested China to roll over its $2 billion deposits for another year as the country awaits a much-needed $1.1 billion tranche of funding from the global lender.

Pakistan communicated to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) its plans to raise its dwindling foreign exchange reserves to $10 billion by the end of June.

Pakistan informed the IMF about implementing various measures on the Fund’s request for the release of the $1.1 billion tranches under the $7 billion loan facility.