Forex: Reserves flat at $17.5b
Reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) rose to $14.11 billion from $14.09 billion a week ago
KARACHI:
Foreign exchange reserves of the country were flat at $17.52 billion in the week ended June 18, unchanged from the previous week, a central bank official said on Thursday. Reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) rose to $14.11 billion from $14.09 billion a week ago, while those held by commercial banks eased to $3.41 billion from $3.43 billion, said SBP’s chief spokesman Syed Wasimuddin. Forex reserves have grown steadily thanks to higher export proceeds as well as record inflow of remittances, hitting an all-time high of $17.95 billion during the week that ended on March 26. Reserves have since eased slightly on debt repayments. Remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis crossed $10 billion for the first time, hitting $10.1 billion in the first 11 months of the 2010-11 fiscal year, an increase of 25 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to SBP data.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2011.
Foreign exchange reserves of the country were flat at $17.52 billion in the week ended June 18, unchanged from the previous week, a central bank official said on Thursday. Reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) rose to $14.11 billion from $14.09 billion a week ago, while those held by commercial banks eased to $3.41 billion from $3.43 billion, said SBP’s chief spokesman Syed Wasimuddin. Forex reserves have grown steadily thanks to higher export proceeds as well as record inflow of remittances, hitting an all-time high of $17.95 billion during the week that ended on March 26. Reserves have since eased slightly on debt repayments. Remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis crossed $10 billion for the first time, hitting $10.1 billion in the first 11 months of the 2010-11 fiscal year, an increase of 25 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to SBP data.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2011.