Govt borrowing update: debt increases by Rs135.46 billion in one week

WEB DESK: In the latest financial update, the government of Pakistan has added Rs135.46 billion to its debt during the week ending February 23, 2024.

This development propels the total net borrowing for the ongoing fiscal year 2024 to a significant Rs2.72 trillion, as per the central bank’s weekly estimates.

Categorically, government sector borrowings are classified into three main segments: budgetary support, commodity operations, and others.

Diving into the specifics, the weekly net borrowing for budgetary support stood at Rs143.77 billion, while commodity operations saw a retirement of Rs8.26 billion. Additionally, Rs43.97 million was retired in the ‘others’ category during the week.

Summing up the figures, this brings the cumulative borrowing for the current fiscal year 2024 to Rs3.01 trillion for budgetary support, Rs291.76 billion for the retirement of commodity operations, and Rs0.81 billion for other purposes.

Crucially, the State Bank of Pakistan and the Scheduled Banks emerge as the primary sources of financing for budgetary support.

Remarkably, during this fiscal year, the government has repaid a net sum of Rs883.81 billion to the central bank.

Breaking it down, the Federal Government retired Rs520.94 billion, the Provincial Government settled Rs341.15 billion, AJK Government cleared Rs18.14 billion, and the GB Government handled Rs3.59 billion.

On a different note, the Scheduled Banks have disbursed a net total of Rs3.89 trillion, with the Federal Government borrowing Rs4.08 trillion while the Provincial Government repaid Rs182.38 billion.

This financial overview underscores the evolving dynamics of Pakistan’s fiscal landscape, as the government strategically navigates its borrowing and repayment patterns amid economic challenges.

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