Islamabad: The forex reserves of Pakistan held by the State Bank dropped by $340.5 million to settle at $8 billion as of September 23, from $8.34 billion recorded on September 16.
According to the weekly data shared by the central bank on Thursday, during the week that ended on September 23, the total reserves held by the country fell from $14 billion to $13.76 billion.
Nevertheless, during the same period under review, the net forex reserves held by the commercial banks increased by $32 million to reach $5.756 billion.
SBP-held reserves dip by $277 million
Pakistan’s Current Account Deficit in August shrinks by 42% MoM
The Current Account Deficit (CAD) of Pakistan shrank by 42.13%, in August of the fiscal year 2023, the State Bank of Pakistan reported last week.
According to the monthly report published by the Central Bank on the balance of payments, on a Month-on-Month basis, the current account deficit shrank by 42.13% during August of the fiscal year 2023 and fell to $0.7 billion from $1.21 billion recorded a month earlier.
According to the report, exports of goods in August amounted to $2.8 billion.
Similarly, imports amounted to $5.75 billion during the second month of FY23.
August trade deficit swells to $3.5 billion MoM
However, on a year-on-year basis, the current account deficit also dropped by 53.84% during August because $1.52 billion of deficit was recorded during the same period last year.
According to the State Bank, cumulatively, July-August CAD declined by $0.5 billion to $1.9 billion compared to the same period last year, mainly due to the increase in exports by $0.5 billion and contraction in imports by $0.2 billion.
