WASHINGTON: The executive committee meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) scheduled to be held on Monday (today) to consider releasing the much-anticipated tranche of 1.2 billion dollar to cash-strapped Pakistan as Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that Islamabad has secured financing that the IMF required it to first arrange before considering a bailout deal worked out between IMF staff and the country.
PLM-N led coalition government expects the Washington-based lender to resume the month-long stalled $6 billion bailout program. If the board approves the deal, the IMF will immediately disburse about $1.2 billion to Pakistan and may provide up to $4 billion over the remainder of the current fiscal year, which began on July 1.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Sunday that in recent weeks Pakistan “has tied up at least $37 billion in international loans and investments, pulling the country away from the kind of financial collapse seen in Sri Lanka”.
Moreover, the VOA reported that in the last six weeks Pakistan has secured “loans, financing, deferred oil payments and investment commitments close to $12 billion from China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE” to avoid a default. But such commitments will become available only after the IMF board approves the package.
The WSJ noted that the IMF had asked the country to first arrange additional funds to cover the rest of its external funding shortfall for the fiscal year, pointing out that Islamabad appears to have met that target.
Among allies, “China led the way, providing more than $10 billion, mostly by rolling over existing loans,” the report added.
In an interview to WSJ, Finance Minister Miftah Ismail said Saudi Arabia was rolling over a $3 billion loan and was providing at least $1.2 billion worth of oil on a deferred payment basis. Riyadh would also invest $1 billion in Pakistan.
The UAE will invest a similar amount in Pakistan’s commercial sector, and it is rolling over a $2.5 billion loan. Last week, Qatar announced it would invest $3 billion in the country.
