*Karachi – August 16, 2025:* Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves saw amodest increase of $11 million this week, with the State Bank of Pakistan’s(SBP) holdings rising to $14.24 billion, the central bank reported onFriday.
The uptick pushed the country’s total liquid reserves to *$19.50 billion*as of August 8, compared to dangerously low levels just two years ago whenreserves had slipped below $4 billion, sparking concerns of a sovereigndefault. At that point, the reserves were barely sufficient to cover a fewweeks of imports.
Since mid-2023, the government has sought to stabilize the economy throughback-to-back *International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programmes*, policyreforms, and enhanced economic diplomacy aimed at attracting foreigninvestment. Authorities have also worked on strengthening remittanceinflows through banking channels and shifting towards an export-drivengrowth model.Breakdown of Reserves
According to SBP data:
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*Total liquid reserves*: $19,496.7 million –
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*SBP reserves*: $14,243.2 million –
*Commercial banks’ reserves*: $5,253.5 million
While the central bank did not specify reasons for the weekly increase,officials have previously attributed recent gains to *stronger inflows andearnings* rather than reliance on external borrowing.
Economists suggest that sustaining and further improving reserves willrequire continued fiscal discipline, export competitiveness, and steadyremittance growth to reduce dependence on foreign sources.