KARACHI:
Acting State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Murtaza Syed has said the friendly Gulf countries – Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE – have devised their strategies to cumulatively provide $4 billion financial support to Pakistan over the next one year.
“Qatar will provide a bilateral assistance worth $2 billion,” Syed was quoted as saying while briefing analysts after the announcement of the monetary policy on Monday. The statement came ahead of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s official visit to Qatar on Tuesday and Wednesday (today and tomorrow).
Besides Qatar, Syed said, Saudi Arabia would finance $1 billion through supplying petroleum products on deferred payments over the next 12 months. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) would invest $1 billion in Pakistan, Syed was quoted by an expert who attended the briefing.
Earlier, the federal government planned to give substantial shareholding to the UAE in the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and its Roosevelt Hotel in New York.
While announcing the latest monetary policy, the central bank left the key policy rate unchanged at 15% for the next seven weeks.