KARACHI: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday it would wait for findings of its mission, currently holding talks in Islamabad, for further engagement with Pakistan, which seeks a fresh bailout from the global lender.
The South Asian country, which has been facing low foreign exchange reserves, currency devaluation and high inflation, last month completed a short-term $3 billion IMF program that helped stave off a sovereign default, but the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has stressed the need for a fresh, longer-term program.
While Islamabad has said it expects a staff-level agreement by July, both Pakistani and IMF officials have refrained from commenting on the size of the program. The South Asian country is expected to seek around $7-8 billion bailout from the global lender.
An IMF team, led by Mission Chief Nathan Porter, this week met Pakistan Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, central bank governor, chairman of the Federal Board of Revenue and other officials in Islamabad to kickstart discussions on the country’s further engagement with the lender.
“Right now, a mission team led by Nathan Porter, our Mission Chief, is meeting with the authorities this week to discuss the next phase of our engagement with Pakistan,” IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack said at a press briefing on Thursday, when asked about the status of talks with Pakistan.
“Given that there is a mission on the ground, we will wait for them to complete their work and we will communicate the findings of the mission in due course.”
Pakistan narrowly averted a default last summer and its $350 billion economy has slightly stabilized after the completion of the last IMF program, with inflation coming down to around 17 percent in April from a record high of 38 percent in May last year.
However, the South Asian country is still dealing with a high fiscal shortfall and while it has controlled its external account deficit through import control mechanisms, it has come at the expense of stagnating growth, which is expected to be around 2 percent this year, compared to negative growth last year.
Wall Street Bank Citi expects Pakistan to reach an agreement with the IMF of up to $8 billion program by end-July, and recommends going long on the country’s 2027 international bond.
“While longer-term challenges pertain, we see several positive catalysts supporting the Eurobonds,” Nikola Apostolov at Citi wrote in a note to clients.
“First, a larger and longer IMF EFF (Extended Fund Facility) program could be finalized by July – possibly a $7-8 billion 4-year program and secondly and a possible inflow of Saudi investments,” Apostolov said after a team from Citi visited Pakistan and met policymakers, including Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
Citi said it expected Pakistan’s international 2027 bond to offer a sweet spot to investors with sufficient liquidity and large upside as risks of default dissipate further.
IMF to wait for ‘findings’ of mission in Pakistan for further engagement with Islamabad — spokesperson
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IMF to wait for ‘findings’ of mission in Pakistan for further engagement with Islamabad — spokesperson
- An IMF team this week met top Pakistani officials in Islamabad to kickstart discussions on a fresh bailout
- The cash-strapped South Asian country is expected to seek around $7-8 billion bailout from the global lender
Baloch separatist group claims attack on Pakistan security convoy by woman suicide bomber
- One Pakistani troop was killed, four injured as suicide bomber targeted security convoy in Balochistan on Monday
- Baloch Liberation Army has previously used woman fighters to carry out suicide attacks against security forces
QUETTA: A prominent Baloch separatist outfit this week claimed responsibility for an attack by a woman suicide bomber targeting a convoy of Pakistani security forces that resulted in the killing of one paramilitary troop and injuries to four others in the southwestern Balochistan province.
The attack took place in Balochistan’s Kalat district on Monday afternoon, when the paramilitary Frontier Corps (FC) convoy was en route to security forces’ mess from the FC Fort on N-25 Quetta-Karachi highway, according to Kalat Deputy Commissioner Bilal Shabbir.
The Baloch Liberation Army, (BLA) the most prominent ethnic Baloch separatist outfits in Balochistan, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on Monday night.
“A female suicide bomber struck the security forces convoy killing one soldier of the paramilitary Frontier Corps on the spot and injuring four others who were shifted to hospital,” DC Shabbir told Arab News.
“The female suicide bomber was standing outside the FC fort located at the highway and detonated herself when they were moving from the fort to the security forces’ mess in Kalat.”
The BLA has used woman fighters in its ranks to carry out suicide attacks against Pakistani security forces and Chinese nationals over the last few years.
In 2022, Shari Baloch, a woman suicide bomber linked to the BLA carried out a suicide attack that ripped through a passenger van, killing three Chinese nationals and a Pakistani in the southern port city of Karachi, according to Pakistani authorities.
In November last year, Pakistani officials arrested a woman among three suspects involved in a deadly suicide bombing, also claimed by the BLA, that killed two Chinese nationals and a Pakistani man outside the Karachi airport on Oct. 6, 2024.
Balochistan has for years been the scene of an insurgency, where separatist groups have frequently attacked police and security forces as well as civilians and foreigners they see as “outsiders” in the resource-rich region, where China has been building a deep-sea port in Gwadar on the Arabian Sea and has made huge investments under its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
The separatists accuse Islamabad of exploiting the province’s natural resources. Successive Pakistani governments deny the allegations and say they have prioritized Balochistan’s development through investments in health, education and infrastructure projects.
Pakistan, IMF kick off talks on $7 billion bailout program review
- IMF delegation led by Nathan Porter arrived in Pakistan on Monday to assess country’s economic performance
- Pakistan secured the $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) last summer as part of an economic recovery plan
KARACHI: Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday formally kicked off talks for the first review of a $7 billion bailout program that Islamabad secured last year, the finance ministry said in a statement.
A Pakistani economic adviser told Arab News on Monday, requesting anonymity, that a nine-member mission led by Nathan Porter had landed in Pakistan to assess the country’s economic performance to determine the release of a $1.1 billion tranche over the following three weeks.
Pakistan has made little economic gains since securing the IMF bailout last summer. The country’s consumer price index (CPI) inflation rate, maintaining a downward trend on Monday, hit a more than 9-year low at 1.51 percent year-on-year in February.
“Pictures of kick-off meeting held today, ” the finance ministry wrote as caption of two photos shared with media on WhatsApp. The pictures showed Pakistani officials, led by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, involved in discussions with an IMF delegation led by its Pakistan mission chief Nathan Porter.
Pakistan’s finance ministry has so far not shared any details of the talks between the government and the IMF. However, local media has widely covered the delegation’s visit.
Top Pakistani news channel, ARY News, reported that the IMF was demanding action against tax evasion in Pakistan’s real estate sector.
“During the talks, the IMF pushed for action against those misdeclaring property values,” ARY reported on Monday, saying the government had assured the international lender it would activate the Real Estate Regulatory Authority.
“Strict penalties, including imprisonment and fines, will be imposed on individuals and agents who falsely declare property values … As per sources, failing to register could result in a fine of up to Rs500,000,” ARY added.
Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper said the government “remains optimistic about a successful conclusion to the talks.”
“The performance review, in principle, is based on the first half of the current fiscal year — July 1 to Dec 31, 2024 — and while some shortcomings could be observed at that time, all those missing links have now been covered,” Dawn reported, quoting a Pakistani official.
The IMF team usually spends around two weeks reviewing fiscal reforms and policy.
Last week, a separate IMF team visited Pakistan to discuss around $1 billion in climate financing on top of the EFF. That disbursement will take place under the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Trust, created in 2022 to provide long-term concessional cash for climate-related spending, such as adaptation and transitioning to cleaner energy.
Upbeat New Zealand feel ‘lucky’ in Lahore for South Africa semifinal
- Kiwis face South Africa in Lahore on Wednesday in second Champions Trophy semifinal
- New Zealand won tri-series tournament involving Pakistan, South Africa in Lahore weeks ago
New Zealand bring “positive emotions” on their return to Lahore for the Champions Trophy semifinal against South Africa after good results during the Pakistan tri-series, coach Gary Stead said on Tuesday.
New Zealand beat a vastly different South Africa team by six wickets in Lahore three weeks ago, two days after beating Pakistan at the same venue in warmups for the ODI tournament.
“We are lucky. We’ve had some experience playing here in the tri-series before the tournament actually kicked off,” Stead told reporters on a video call.
“We’ve got some on-ground experience and I guess some positive emotions to fall back on the way we played here as well.”
Though losing to India on a spin-friendly wicket in Dubai, New Zealand were happy how their three-pronged pace attack of Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson and Will O’Rourke performed to restrict the South Asians to 249-9.
Stead, also a selector, said it was likely New Zealand would stick with the same trio and complement them with spin from their contingent of all-rounders as they did against India and in the previous win against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi.
New Zealand produced 300-plus totals in both their recent wins in Lahore, and Stead said taking wickets in the early and middle overs would be key to prevent South Africa from batting big.
“We haven’t been down to the ground yet to see if we’re on a used wicket or not, but generally these wickets are pretty good batting surfaces,” he added.
“They don’t bounce too much.”
South Africa will have a very different team than the lineup that played in the tri-series.
Tabraiz Shamsi has not appeared at the Champions Trophy but Stead suggested the left-arm wrist spinner might be called up in place of paceman Lungi Ngidi.
“They’re a very, very good side and we’re going to have to play right near our best to beat them,” he added.
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia resolve to strengthen trade and investment relations
- Deputy PM Ishaq Dar meets Saudi Ambassador Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki in Islamabad
- Pakistan has been eyeing Saudi investment in minining, oil and gas, and energy sectors
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar and Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador Nawaf bin Said-Al Malki expressed their resolve to strengthen existing ties between the two countries, particularly in trade and investment, state broadcaster reported this week amid Islamabad’s efforts to attract investment from Gulf countries in its priority sectors.
Pakistan has pushed in recent months to strengthen trade and investment ties with friendly nations, particularly the Kingdom, which last year promised a $5 billion investment package that cash-strapped Islamabad desperately needs to shore up foreign reserves and fight a chronic balance of payment crisis.
Pakistani and Saudi businesses signed several agreements and memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in October 2024 worth $2.8 billion. Islamabad is also looking to attract Saudi investment in key sectors such as oil and gas, renewable energy, mining and minerals, infrastructure and others to keep its fragile $350 billion economy afloat.
“Saudi Ambassador Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki called on Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar in Islamabad,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Monday. “Both expressed their commitment to further strengthen the existing deep-rooted ties between the two countries, particularly in the areas of trade and investment.”
The state media said Malki conveyed Ramadan greetings for Dar and the people of Pakistan. The deputy prime minister wished the same to the Saudi leadership and the Kingdom’s people.
Apart from strong trade and investment ties, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia also share deep cultural, defense and economic relations. The Kingdom is home to over two million Pakistanis and for years has remained the largest contributor to the country’s workers’ remittance inflows.
These remittances play a major role in supporting Pakistan’s external account, especially at a time when the country is recording small gains after a prolonged economic crisis that diminished its foreign exchange reserves and weakened its national currency.
‘Blatant violation of law’: Pakistan condemns Israel for blocking Gaza aid
- Israel blocked entry of aid trucks into Gaza on Sunday as standoff over uneasy truce with Hamas escalated
- Pakistan urges world to hold Israel accountable for “imposition of collective punishment” on Palestinian civilians
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson this week criticized Israel for blocking humanitarian aid to Gaza, calling it a blatant violation of law and urging the international community to hold the Jewish state accountable for collectively punishing millions of civilians through the move.
Israel blocked the entry of aid trucks into Gaza on Sunday as a standoff over the truce that has halted fighting for the past six weeks escalated.
Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres warned that the suspension of aid will add significant pressure on the two million Palestinians in the enclave who are still suffering from shortages of essential goods following 16 months of war. Israel has previously accused Hamas of hijacking aid, which the group denied.
“The Government of Pakistan condemns in the strongest possible terms Israeli decision to block critical humanitarian aid from entering Gaza, during the holy month of Ramadan,” the foreign office said in a press release on Monday.
“This latest action is part of Israel’s systematic campaign to deny much needed humanitarian aid to millions of Palestinians in dire need. This constitutes yet another blatant violation of international law by the occupying power and could imperil the ceasefire agreement.”
Pakistan urged the international community to ensure unrestricted humanitarian access to Gaza and to hold the Jewish state accountable for “imposition of collective punishment” by denying millions of civilians humanitarian aid.
“We also reiterate our call for the full implementation of the agreement to secure a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza as well as the revival of a political process to achieve the two-state solution, with a viable, sovereign State of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,” the foreign office concluded.
Phase two talks between Israel and Hamas to negotiate a final end to the war have barely begun. Israel, while announcing the halt to aid entry, said it will not allow a ceasefire without the release of all remaining hostages. Hamas has denounced Israel’s move as “blackmail” and a “blatant coup against the agreement.”
Hamas’ attack on southern Israel on Oct.7, 2023, killed 1,200 people and 251 people were taken into Gaza as hostages. The subsequent Israeli campaign killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, displaced almost all of its 2.3 million population and left Gaza a wasteland.
Both sides agreed to an uneasy, six-week truce on Jan. 19 which paved the way for the release of hostages from both sides. Israel’s move to block humanitarian aid to Gaza has renewed fears among the international community that the conflict would restart.
