Forex reserves rise by $30m to $4.46b

The foreign exchange (FX) reserves held by the central bank rose by 0.68% on a WoW basis to $4.46 billion, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Thursday.

On April 20, 2023, the SBP’s FX reserves stood at $4,462.8 million, up by $30 million as compared to $4,432.5 million on April 14.

The central bank gave no reason for the increase.

Overall, the liquid FX reserves held by the country, including the net reserves held by banks other than the SBP, stood at $10,024.3 million.

The net reserves held by banks amounted to $5,561.5 million.

Ismail Iqbal Securities Head of Research Fahad Rauf has said that any improvement in the FX reserves depends on the revival of the IMF programme and inflow of fresh financing from other creditors.

Meanwhile, Pakistani currency lost 0.19%, or Rs0.53, to Rs283.92 against the US dollar in inter-bank market on Thursday, ending two days of winning streak.

Earlier, the currency had recovered to over one-month high at Rs283.39.