The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has expressed satisfaction with a briefing by State Bank of Pakistan officials as part of the IMF fourth review Pakistan negotiations. The IMF mission is set to begin formal policy-level talks with Pakistan’s economic team on Monday.
According to sources, the IMF mission will travel from Karachi to Islamabad on Saturday for the next phase of discussions. The mission has spent the past three days in Karachi, where it held meetings with State Bank officials and the Sindh government.
Sources said the Sindh government briefed the IMF team on its financial position and its ability to provide a surplus budget to the federal government. Sindh’s tax revenue reached Rs593 billion by June 30, while non-tax revenue more than doubled to over Rs80 billion.
The State Bank also briefed the IMF mission on Pakistan’s recent economic performance. According to Finance Ministry sources, the central bank shared information about foreign exchange reserves, monetary policy, imports and the foreign exchange market.
The briefing included an update on foreign exchange reserves. State Bank officials told the mission that Pakistan had achieved its target of keeping foreign exchange reserves above $17 billion. The development was discussed during preparations for the IMF fourth review Pakistan programme.
The State Bank officials also briefed the IMF team on the current account position and developments in foreign direct investment. The discussions covered recent economic indicators and areas relevant to the ongoing review.
The IMF’s satisfaction with the State Bank briefing comes ahead of the formal policy-level talks in Islamabad. The mission will now hold discussions with Pakistan’s economic team as part of the IMF fourth review Pakistan process.
