KARACHI: Pakistan has completed $1.43 billion loan payments as part of routine external debt management, the country’s finance adviser said on Tuesday, highlighting stable external buffers and improved liquidity.
Pakistan has long relied on external loans to help bridge persistent gaps in public finances and foreign exchange reserves, driven largely by a narrow tax base, chronic trade deficits, rising debt-servicing costs and repeated balance-of-payments pressures.
Over the decades, successive governments have turned to multilateral and bilateral lenders, including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, to support budgetary needs and shore up foreign exchange reserves.
Khurram Schehzad, adviser to the finance minister, said Pakistan had repaid $1.43 billion in external debt, including the $1.3 billion Eurobond maturing on April 8 and $126.125 million in coupon obligations on other Eurobond issuances.
“Debt servicing continues to be executed as a non-event — reflecting consistency, discipline, and strengthened capacity,” he said on X.
In Feb., Pakistan’s finance ministry said the country’s total external debt and liabilities stood at $138 billion, which encompassed a broad range of obligations, including public and publicly guaranteed debt, debt of Public Sector Enterprises (both guaranteed and non-guaranteed), bank borrowings, private-sector external debt, and intercompany liabilities to direct investors.
The repayment comes as Pakistan targets foreign exchange reserves above $18 billion by June under a $7 billion IMF program.
Schehzad said the performance was underpinned by stable external buffers and improved liquidity, continued macroeconomic stabilization and resilience, strengthening investor confidence and a more sustainable and disciplined debt trajectory.
“The seamless execution of large external repayments underscores both capacity and consistency,” he added.
