SBP’s forex reserves drop by over $276 million in a week

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) foreign exchange reserves dropped by $276.3 million (or 2.36 per cent week-on-week), reaching $11.45 billion in the week ending January 17, 2025, according to data from the SBP.

This marks a noticeable dip for the central bank’s reserves in just one week.

Similarly, Pakistan’s total foreign reserves, including those held by commercial banks, decreased by $261.6 million (or 1.59 per cent), bringing the total to $16.19 billion.

On a positive note, commercial banks saw a slight increase in their reserves, which rose by $14.7 million (0.31 per cent week-on-week), reaching $4.74 billion.

Looking at the bigger picture, reserves held by the SBP have gone up by $2.06 billion (or 21.93 per cent) during the current fiscal year. However, in contrast, the reserves have dropped by $261.8 million (or 2.24 per cent) since the start of 2025.

Monthly figures released by the central bank show that in December, SBP reserves dropped by $306.20 million, falling to $11.73 billion from $12.03 billion in November. However, when compared to December 2023, reserves have increased by $3.49 billion (or 42.49 per cent).

Commercial banks’ net foreign reserves stood at $4.19 billion in December 2024, an increase of $105.1 million compared to the previous month. However, these reserves have declined by $244.1 million compared to the same period last year when they stood at $4.43 billion.

By the end of December, Pakistan’s total liquid foreign reserves amounted to $15.92 billion, a decline of $201.1 million from the previous month’s total of $16.13 billion. However, compared to December 2023, the country’s total reserves grew by $3.25 billion (or 25.68 per cent).

Meanwhile, on the currency front, the Pakistani rupee (PKR) experienced a minor drop of 3.72 paisa (or 0.01 per cent) against the US dollar in Wednesday’s interbank session. The rupee closed at Rs278.85 per USD, slightly down from the previous close of Rs278.82.

Throughout the trading session, the rupee saw an intraday high of Rs278.85 (bid) and a low of Rs278.70 (ask).

Since the start of the current fiscal year, the PKR has depreciated by 51.15 paisa (or 0.18 per cent) against the US dollar. In 2025 alone, the currency has fallen by 30.27 paisa (or 0.11 per cent).

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