Reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) rose to $13.53 billion from $12.71 billion, while those held by commercial banks fell to $3.67 billion from $3.71 billion, said Syed Wasimuddin, chief spokesman for the central bank.
The government received more than $633 million from the US for providing military and logistical support in the fight against terror, boosting reserves, Wasimuddin said.
The reserves previously hit a record high of $17.1 billion in the week ended October 15 because of an increase in remittances from overseas Pakistanis and a narrowing trade deficit.
Earlier, the reserves got a boost in September after the IMF sent $450 million and said that the money would go towards the budget to help with additional spending for flood relief and immediate foreign exchange needs.
In the currency market, the rupee ended at 85.70/75 to the dollar, firmer than Wednesday’s close of 85.74/79, amid a lack of import payments. But dealers expect pressure on the local unit following an increase in international oil prices.
In the money market, overnight rates ended at the top level of 13.90 per cent, unchanged from the previous day’s close despite an eight-day reverse repo by the State Bank of Pakistan in which it bought back Rs32.6 billion ($380 million) worth of government paper to inject liquidity into the interbank market.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 7th, 2011.
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