July-May period: $12.135bn foreign loans incurred against budgeted $12.233bn

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan incurred foreign debt of $12.135 billion from multiple financing sources during July-May of 2020-21 including $3.609 billion from foreign commercial banks (30 percent) against the total budgeted external loans of $12.233 billion for the entire fiscal year 2020-21.

The Economic Affairs Division (EAD) data, released on Friday, shows that in May 2021, the country received $699.72 million external inflows from multiple financing sources including $362.67 million (52 percent) from foreign commercial banks.

According to the data, public grants and loans stood at $10.896 billion during July-May 2020-21, while for the first time publicly guaranteed has been reflected in the data, which is $1.239 billion during the first eleven months of the current fiscal year.

In the corresponding period (July-May) of fiscal year 2019-20, the external inflows were $7.451 billion, which were around (58 percent) of the annual budgeted amount of $12.958 billion.

The data shows that project aid remained $1.417 billion, while non-project aid was $9.478 billion during the first 11 months of current fiscal year.

The government borrowed $3.609 billion from foreign commercial banks, $2.5 billion from bonds issuance, while $1 billion was received as safe deposits from China.

The government has budgeted $1 billion under the head of Saudi oil facility, however, no amount was received during the current fiscal year so far.

According to the data, the government procured $3.609 billion loans from foreign commercial banks during July-May 2020-21, including $323.62 million from Ajman Bank including $289 million in May, $600 million from the Standard Chartered Bank (London) including $73.67 million in May, $815.11 million from Dubai Bank, $200 million were received from the consortium-led by Suisse AG, UBL, and ABL, $370 million from Emirates NBD, and $1.3 billion from the ICBC, China.

The bilateral and multilateral development partners disbursed $3.787 billion during the period under review (July-May) against the budgetary allocation of $5.811 billion for fiscal year 2020-21.

Among the multilateral development partners, the Asian Development Bank provided $1.283 billion against the budgeted estimates of $1.470 billion followed by the World Bank's $1.224 billion against the budgetary allocation of $2.257 billion and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) $252 million.

While from bilateral sources, France, the USA, and China provided $39 million, $102 million, and $178 million, respectively.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021