Forex: Reserves drop to $14.33b from $14.39b

KARACHI: Foreign exchange reserves dropped to $14.33 billion in the week ending October 26 from $14.39 billion the previous week, the central bank said on Thursday. Reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) fell to $9.81 billion from $9.83 billion a week earlier, while those held by commercial banks dropped to $4.53 billion from $4.56 billion. Foreign exchange reserves hit a record $18.31 billion in July last year. Higher exports and record remittances have also supported Pakistan’s reserves. Overseas Pakistanis repatriated $3.60 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2013. Pakistan’s reserves have been drained by debt repayments, including $109.4 million on October 1, 2012, on a $7 billion International Monetary Fund loan. The next repayment is due in February 2013. Remittances from Pakistanis abroad rose 9.16 percent to $3.6 billion in the first quarter, July to September, of the fiscal year 2012-13, compared with $3.297 billion in the same period last year.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 2^nd, 2012.