The foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank decreased by over 8 percent on a weekly basis to their lowest level since April 2014, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on Thursday.
On December 16, the foreign currency reserves held by the SBP were recorded at $6.116 billion, down $584 million compared to $6.700 billion on December 9.
According to a statement issued by the central bank, the massive decrease in the reserves was due to external debt repayment.
Overall liquid foreign currency reserves held by the country, including net reserves held by banks other than the SBP, stood at $12.00 billion. The net reserves held by banks stood at $5.884 billion, registering an increase of $14 million during the week.
On Thursday, S&P Global cut Pakistan’s long-term sovereign credit rating by one notch to “CCC+” from “B” to reflect a continued weakening of the country’s external, fiscal and economic metrics.
