This is an all-time high for Pakistan.
Pakistan’s forex reserves at high of $13.281 bln
Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves increased by $27 million to a new high of $13.281 billion in the week ending on Feb. 17, the central bank said on Friday. Reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) rose to $10.929 billion from $10.846 billion, however, those held by commercial banks fell to $2.352 billion from $2.408 billion, the central bank said in a statement. Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have grown sharply in recent months, thanks to healthy remittances from overseas Pakistanis, as well as a rise in foreign direct investment. Foreign direct investment rose more than 69 percent to $2.1 billion in the first seven months of the 2006/07 fiscal year (July-June), led by inflows into the financial, communications and energy sectors, official figures show. Inflows from foreign portfolio investment during July-January were $697.4 million, up from $400.5 million in the corresponding period last year. During the period, remittances sent by Pakistanis abroad were recorded at $2.96 billion, up from $2.44 billion in the year-ago period.