Govt borrows Rs599b via T-bills auction

The government on Wednesday raised debt worth Rs599 billion through the sale of treasury bills to commercial banks, which lent funds at a historical high return of almost 22%.

The borrowed amount was, however, almost 40% less than the target of Rs1 trillion as banks demanded a higher rate of return on lending more money, according to central bank data.

Banks offered Rs1.04 trillion in financing against the auction target of Rs1 trillion. Data breakdown suggested that the government borrowed Rs510.86 billion through the sale of three-month T-bills at a return of 21.99%.

It raised debt of Rs23.52 billion through the auction of six-month papers at 21.97% and borrowed Rs74.92 billion through 12-month T-bills at 21.99%.

Meanwhile, Pakistani currency remained stable at Rs283.89 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market as gap between demand and supply of the greenback narrowed.

Market analysts suggested that the demand for US dollars for imports was stable, while its supply through exports and worker remittances remained unchanged.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 20^th, 2023.

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