Pakistan received $16.08 billion in foreign loans and grants during the first ten months of the 2024-25 fiscal year, nearing its annual target of $19.2 billion by June 30. About half of this total consisted of rollover loans from China, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). These rollovers help Pakistan manage its debt repayments and keep its reserves stable.
Fresh loan and grant inflows from July to April were $6.086 billion, down nearly 15% compared to the previous year. This decrease mainly resulted from delays in the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) bailout payments. The IMF disbursed $1 billion as an upfront payment under its $7 billion Extended Fund Facility earlier in the year, with another $1 billion released recently.
The government secured $3 billion in rollover loans each from Saudi Arabia and China, and $2 billion from the UAE. These loans maintain Pakistan’s net international reserves at about $3.3 billion. However, bilateral loan disbursements fell sharply by 58%, highlighting challenges in foreign funding outside the main partners.
Loans from foreign commercial lenders, mostly UAE-based banks, showed some improvement with $706 million inflows, though this is below the government’s $3.8 billion target for the year. Economic uncertainty and IMF delays have limited access to commercial financing. Pakistan also saw a rise in remittances through Naya Pakistan Certificates, which brought in $1.61 billion compared to $886 million last year.
Multilateral funding remained steady, with the Asian Development Bank and World Bank providing $1.25 billion and $1.07 billion respectively. These funds, along with the IMF support and rollovers, are critical for Pakistan to close its external financing gap and sustain economic stability during a challenging period.