ISLAMABAD: Cash-strapped Pakistan is expecting the third and final disbursement amounting to $300 million from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) on Friday, said finance minister Ishaq Dar in a social media post.
Despite dealing with one of the worst economic crises in history, Pakistan managed to repay $1.3 billion loan to the ICBC in recent months, following which the Chinese bank approved its rollover in March while agreeing to disburse the money in three installments.
The country received the first installment of $500 million on March 4, which took its official forex reserves to $4 billion. Pakistan got the second installment, amounting to another $500 million, on March 17.
“Out of Chinese Bank’s approved facility of $1.3 billion (which was earlier repaid by Pakistan), the State Bank of Pakistan would receive back third and last disbursement today in its account amounting to $300 million,” Dar wrote in a Twitter post.
Faced with alarmingly low foreign currency reserves and rapidly depreciating national currency, Pakistan desperately needs more external financing to fully fund the balance of payments gap during the ongoing fiscal year ending in June.
The country has been negotiating with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to secure over $1 billion under a $7 billion loan program.
The IMF managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, said the fund was in talks with nations friendly to Pakistan to secure financial assurances vital for the program after the United Arab Emirates pledged to offer $1 billion to the South Asian country on Thursday.
Last week, Saudi Arabia also told the IMF it would provide $2 billion financing to Pakistan.
