Pakistan will more likely receive a loan instalment 1.1 billion U.S. dollars from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) next month because the latter was satisfied with its economic performance, officials said on Saturday. successfully completed negotiations for an amount of under the , officials said.
This will enable the IMF to go to their Board for the release of fifth tranche of about 1.1 billion dollars, possibly before December 15, the Finance Ministry said.
The Pakistani delegation led by Pakistani Finance Minister Ishaq Dar met with IMF team, led by Jeffrey Franks, Chief of IMF Mission, spanning almost 11 days on the Fourth Review as well as the Fifth Review of Pakistan's 6.64 billion U.S. dollars three- year Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program in Dubai.
Franks in his statement on the occasion said that the IMF mission held "productive discussions" with Pakistani government officials on Pakistan's economic performance under the EFF program and "is encouraged by the overall progress in strengthening macroeconomic stability and output growth."
Franks said the mission reached understandings with the authorities on a Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies which, upon management's approval, would be considered by the IMF Executive Board in December to conclude the fourth and fifth reviews.
Upon approval, about 1.1 billion dollars would be made available to Pakistan.
Franks said the mission was encouraged by Pakistan's strong fiscal performance achieved during fiscal year 2013/2014, and by the authorities' determination to further lower the deficit to 4.7 percent of GDP in the current fiscal year.
"The mission reaffirms the IMF's support to the government's efforts to implement their economic reform efforts in improving the business climate," Franks remarked.
Dar told the IMF team that the GDP grew by 4.14 percent in fiscal year 2013-14 and for FY 2014-15, GDP target had been estimated at 5.1 percent. Pakistan's fiscal year begins from July 1. He apprised the IMF team that Pakistan's overall balance of payments position had remained broadly in line with expectations.
"High growth in workers' remittances (up 19.52 percent in the first quarter of FY 2014-15 as compared with same period last year) continued to help contain the current account deficit in the balance of payments," he said.
Combined foreign exchange reserves of State Bank of Pakistan and scheduled banks closed at 13.339 billion U.S. dollars on November 5, 2014 while Inflation has also declined.
The latest numbers indicate that that CPI inflation in Pakistan declined to its 17-month low rate of 5.8 percent in October 2014.