KARACHI: Pakistan’s current account deficit (CAD) fell to $0.4 billion in December 2022 after a whopping decline of 78%, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said on Thursday.
According to SBP data, the country’s CAD – the difference between the country’s higher foreign expenditures and low income – stood at $1.86 billion in the same month last year.
The federal government slashed imports in a bid to avert an external payments crisis. Presently, the country’s foreign exchange reserves are at a three-week import cover at $4.3 billion.
Current Account Deficit (CAD) recorded $0.4 billion in Dec 2022 against a deficit of $1.9 billion in Dec 2021. https://t.co/q3LNv3HOB0https://t.co/Od8ikVvXrd pic.twitter.com/Qv1ARkfzFP
— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) January 18, 2023
“Machinery imports are low due to a slowdown in overall economic activities, curbs by SBP on the import of plant and machinery, higher interest rates, and uncertainty with respect to the IMF programme,” Tahir Abbas from brokerage firm Arif Habib Limited told Reuters.
In October, the country’s current account deficit, on a year-on-year basis, dropped by 68% after the central bank and the government’s measures.
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