Pakistan's Debt Hits Record High At $244 Bn: Report

Pakistan's total debt has surged to a new peak, hitting PKR 67.816 trillion (USD 244 billion) as of May 2024, according to a report by ARY News citing the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

The central bank data reveals a significant 15 per cent increase in the federal government's total debt over the past year, marking an addition of PKR 8,852 billion. In May 2023, the total debt stood at PKR 58,964 billion, escalating to PKR 66,086 billion by April 2024.

Pakistan's domestic debt has also soared to a record high of PKR 46,208 billion, reflecting ongoing fiscal challenges. Meanwhile, the 'Naya Pakistan Certificates' witnessed a notable 37.51 per cent decrease in annual debt, amounting to PKR 87 billion. Additionally, the federal government's external debt experienced a slight decline of 1.4 per cent, dropping from PKR 21,908 billion to PKR 21,608 billion, as reported by ARY News.

Earlier reports from the finance ministry highlighted Pakistan's mounting fiscal pressures, revealing that the country disbursed PKR 5.517 trillion for debt servicing in the first nine months of FY2023-24. This included PKR 4,807 billion for domestic debt servicing and PKR 710 billion for international debt obligations.

The fiscal operation report for the July-March period unveiled that the federal government's gross revenue receipts reached PKR 9.1 trillion. Out of this, PKR 3.8 trillion was allocated to provinces under the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, leaving net revenue receipts at PKR 5.3 trillion.

Under the NFC Award, Punjab received PKR 1,865 billion during July-March FY2023-24, while Sindh obtained PKR 946 billion. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan received PKR 623 billion and PKR 379 billion, respectively, from the divisible pool, ARY News reported.

The latest figures underscore Pakistan's growing debt burden amid efforts to manage fiscal stability and meet financial obligations both domestically and internationally. (ANI)