State Bank of Pakistan receives IMF’s $1.39bn

• IMF on Thursday said its executive board had approved $1.386 billion in emergency financing to Pakistan to meet the balance of payments.
• The funds will help Pakistan deal with a decline in international reserves and allow it to fund targeted and temporary spending increases.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has received $1.39 billion under the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“SBP has received $1.39bn under Rapid Financing Instrument by the IMF,” stated the central bank in a tweet post.

#SBP has received $1.39 bn under Rapid Financing Instrument by the #IMF.

— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) April 22, 2020

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday said its executive board had approved $1.386 billion in emergency financing to Pakistan to meet the balance of payments needed stemming from the novel coronavirus pandemic.

The funds, to come from the IMF's Rapid Financing Instrument, will help Pakistan deal with a decline in international reserves and allow it to fund targeted and temporary spending increases aimed at containing the pandemic and mitigating its economic impact, the IMF said.

"While uncertainty remains high, the near-term economic impact of COVID-19 is expected to be significant, giving rise to large fiscal and external financing needs," the international lender had said in a statement.

"The domestic containment measures, coupled with the global downturn, are severely affecting growth and straining external financing," said Geoffrey Okamoto, the IMF’s first deputy managing director.

"This has created an urgent balance of payments need," he said.