Saudi Arabia vows to continue supporting Pakistan ‘as much as it can’
Saudi Arabia Finance Minister Mohammed bin Abdullah Al-Jadaan said the kingdom would help Pakistan’s finances by shoring up their deposits and making investments there from the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
Addressing a press conference in Riyadh, Al Jadaan said the Saudi government will “continue to support Pakistan as much as we can.”
Earlier, Finance minister Ishaq Dar had requested Saudi Arabia to extend period of its deposits worth 3 billion.
Later, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) had extended the period of its deposits, shoring up the country’s foreign exchange reserves and strengthening domestic economy.
The rollover of the deposits reduced the size of total foreign debt repayment and debt serving by $3 billion to $23.3 billion over the next 12 months (November 2022 to October 2023).
According to SPA, the Saudi minister maintained that the Kingdom will help allied countries struggling with the effects of rising inflation across the world.
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has reported that the country was scheduled to repay a total of $26.3 billion on account of foreign debt and debt services over the next 12 months.
The SBP’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $7.5 billion at present. They stood at $20 billion in August 2021.
The depletion in the reserves created a perception that the country may default on international payments
