- Saudi Arabia will increase the deposit “in weeks, not days,” Dar says.
- He said that the government is determined to complete the IMF program.
- Finn Mandar says PTI’s white paper is an attempt to “deceive” the nation.
Finance and Revenue Minister Senator Ishaq Dar said on Wednesday that he sees Saudi Arabia increasing its reserves in Pakistan “in days, not weeks” as the country grapples with an economic crisis.
The statement comes at a time when the risk of default is looming over Pakistan, the rupee continues to depreciate against the US dollar, and foreign exchange reserves are at record lows – just over a month old. Covering the imports of
Financial pundits, expressing concerns since the fall of the previous government, say the country’s fiscal side will remain weak until there is political stability.
The current government has tried to get the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program back on track and is trying to complete the ninth review, however, the Fund and Islamabad have not yet made any progress. .
At a press conference in Islamabad today along with federal ministers, Dar said the government is committed to completing the latest review and hopes to get the loan soon.
But despite the bleak situation and billions of dollars owed to Pakistan in the next three months, the finance minister assured of meeting international obligations and ruled out default.
“[Our government] Saved the country from default. And with full confidence, I can say that Pakistan will never default,” Dar, who has held the finance portfolio several times, said.
Finman Dar said the government is taking steps to stabilize the economy and has so far cleared letters of credit (LCs) worth $100,000. “The government has also opened LCs for import industries.”
“We will pay off all the debts and people should not worry about it. [The PDM] He came to power to save the state, not just for politics,” stressed the finance minister.
The government termed PTI’s white paper as a ‘fraud’
Criticizing the PTI and its chief Imran Khan, Dar asked the PTI to stop “propaganda” misleading reports of Pakistan’s default as he said the party’s rule , all international rating agencies have downgraded the country.
Earlier in the presser, Fun Min Dar slammed the PTI for “deceiving” the public with its “white paper” on the economy.
The finance minister said the economy was in a “better shape” during the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government than during the PTI’s four-year tenure.
In its document, PTI said that the country has seen a sharp increase in inflation over the past eight months, and all economic indicators, including exports, foreign direct investment and remittances, have seen a downward trend. .
But responding to the PTI’s claims, the finance minister said that in 2018, the budget deficit was 5.8 percent and not 7.6 percent, as stated in the Imran Khan-led party’s document.
“During the first year of the PTI government, the economy grew at 3.12 percent. In 2018, inflation was at 4.7 percent and during the first year of the PTI, it reached 7.5 percent,” Finman said. ” said Finman.
He added that the PML-N government kept the monetary policy at 7.5 percent but the PTI increased it to 13.25 percent in July 2019. Dar added that PML-N ended load shedding, but PTI’s The government could not carry forward the legacy and stop load shedding. Shedding once again hit the public.
The Finance Minister said that PTI raised Rs 19,000 billion in loans, while it left Rs 53,544 billion in loans to the coalition government.