State Bank of Pakistan says country's total debt nearly PKR 60 trillion, a new high

Pakistan's debt has reached a record high of nearly Pakistani rupee (PKR) 60 trillion (Rs 2,22,25,27,15,50,000), which is a surge of PKR 11.9 trillion (Rs 44,07,54,26,36,980) in comparison to the preceding fiscal year. The State Bank of Pakistan has said that public debt has increased to a record PKR 49.2 trillion (Rs 1,82,24,72,26,71,000) by end-June 2022, which was PKR 9.3 trillion (Rs 34,44,91,70,90,250) in the past one fiscal year, ANI cited The Express Tribune.

The central bank's debt bulletin for the fiscal year 2021-22 has revealed that the debt burden rose in terms of the size of the national economy. 

According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the total debt and liabilities of the country rose to PKR 59.7 trillion with an increase of 25% in comparison to the preceding fiscal year. The data released by the State Bank of Pakistan has revealed that the nation has included one-fourth of the debt accumulated between 1947 to June 2021, as per the ANI report.

Furthermore, Pakistan's total debt and liabilities in terms of the size of the economy which were 76.4% in 2018 rose to 89.2% by June 2022. Notably, former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan had committed to cutting the debt burden. However, the government had added PKR 19.5 trillion debt to the total debt stock when Khan left office in April 2022.

Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves fall

Meanwhile, Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves have been reduced by more than $2 billion during the first five weeks of the fiscal year. The decline in foreign reserves has been caused due to huge external debt servicing. The reserves have fallen below $14 billion in the first week of August after continuous payment of debt.

As per the ANI report, Pakistan is now on the brink of economic collapse due to declining foreign currency reserves and inflation. Inflation in Pakistan reached 21.3% in June this year, which is the highest since December 2008. Inflation in Pakistan reached at 23.3% in 2008. The United Nations Development Programme has stated that Pakistan is facing a debt in excess of $250 billion. On August 15, Pakistan increased petrol prices by PKR 6, which has brought the price of petrol to PKR 233.91. 

Inputs from ANI

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