SBP Reserves Fall Below $9 Billion Mark After $239 Million Weekly Decline

The foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) fell below the $9 billion mark according to data issued by the central bank on Thursday. On June 21, the foreign currency reserves held by the SBP were recorded at $8.895 billion, down $239 million compared to $9.135 billion on June 14. In a brief statement, the central bank said the decline in reserves was due to due to external debt repayments. Overall liquid foreign currency reserves held by the country, including net reserves held by banks other than the SBP, stood at $14.207 billion, down $207 million over the previous week. The net reserves held by banks stood at $5.311 billion, registering an increase of $31 million during the week.