Govt debt rises by Rs317bn in a week, total now stands at Rs1.53tr

ISLAMABAD: The federal government added Rs317.06 billion to its debt in the week ending April 18, bringing its total net borrowing for the ongoing fiscal year to Rs1.53 trillion, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

Government borrowing is generally categorised under three heads: budgetary support, commodity operations, and other loans.

During the week under review, borrowing for budgetary support accounted for Rs311.65 billion, while Rs8.15 billion was added for commodity-related expenses. Meanwhile, a net sum of Rs2.75 billion was retired from the ‘others’ category.

So far in fiscal year 2025, the government has borrowed Rs1.83 trillion for budgetary support. However, it has retired Rs296.81 billion in loans taken for commodity operations and Rs1.53 billion from the ‘others’ category.

The two main sources of financing for budgetary support remain the State Bank and scheduled banks.

According to SBP data, the government has made a net repayment of Rs597.76 billion to the central bank so far this fiscal year.

This includes Rs596.78 billion retired by provincial governments, Rs25.14 billion by the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government, and Rs16.84 billion by the Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) government. The federal government, meanwhile, borrowed Rs41 billion from the SBP.

In contrast, the government borrowed heavily from scheduled banks, with a net lending of Rs2.43 trillion.

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