KARACHI: The country’s total debt and liabilities rose to a historical level of Rs 63.9 trillion at the end of the first half of this fiscal year (FY23) due to massive borrowing from domestic and external resources to meet the financial requirements.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities continued to increase and surged by 7 percent during the first half (July-Dec) of this fiscal year. Pakistan’s total debt and liabilities stock reached a historical mark of Rs 63.86 trillion at the end of December 2022 compared to Rs 59.699 trillion at the end of June 2022, depicting an increase of Rs 4.169 trillion.
Q1 FY23: External debt, liabilities dip over $3bn
Major increase was witnessed in the country’s debt profile as it recorded an increase of Rs 3.953 trillion during July-Dec of FY23. Pakistan’s total debt stock stood at Rs 60.718 trillion in December 2022 up from Rs 56.765 trillion in June 2022. During the period under review, the country’s total liabilities also mounted up by Rs 216 billion to Rs 3.625 trillion.
Out of the total debt, the government’s domestic debt stood at Rs 33.116 trillion in December 2022 compared to Rs 31.037 trillion, showing an increase of Rs 2.079 trillion. The Country’s external debt also rose from Rs 24.334 trillion in June 2022 to Rs 26.127 trillion in Dec 2022. Analysts said that rising financial requirements has compelled the government to raise more funds from domestic and external institutions to fulfil the financing gap.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
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