Pakistan's external debts rise by 3.6 pc: central bank

Karachi, May 13 (PTI) Pakistan’s external debts have risen by 3.6 per cent to reach PKR 22,959 billion in FY 2025-26, according to a report by the central bank here.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Wednesday released the latest statistics regarding the country’s debt, revealing that Pakistan’s total debt has surpassed Pakistani rupees (PKR) 80 trillion rupees.

The federal government’s total debt reached PKR 80,524 billion in March, representing a 9.3 per cent increase compared to the same period last year, when the debt stood at PKR 73,688 billion, the central bank said.

The SBP report said that domestic debt had increased by 11.7 per cent reaching PKR 57,566 billion while the external debts stood at PKR 22,959 billion an increase of 3.6 per cent.

On a month-on-month basis, the State Bank noted a slight 1.1 per cent decrease in external debt; however, domestic debt rose by 1.6 per cent, leading to an overall debt increase of 0.8 per cent.

The report says that at present the average debt per citizen is around PKR 3,50,000.

In April, Pakistan repaid a PKR 3.45 billion deposit to the United Arab Emirates after the UAE government refused to extend the facility term.

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves had gotten a boost earlier in April when Saudi Arabia deposited USD 3 billion with the SBP after an agreement which also extended a USD 5 billion deposit by Saudi Arabia for a further period of three years.

Pakistan’s foreign exchange position, though under pressure, remains part of a broader stabilisation effort under the IMF supported reforms. PTI CORR NPK NPK