KARACHI: Pakistan will get a loan of $1 billion from a friendly country toshore up fast depleting foreign currency reserves, media has reported.

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves decreased to $17.13 billion in theweek ending April 20, compared to $17.54 billion in the previous week, theSBP said on Thursday.

After the loan, the reserves would cross $18 billion mark.

There were no more details available in this regard, however, a news storyin this paper last month had stated that the government is all set to‘secure commercial loan of $1 billion to $1.5 billion from Chinese bankswithin the next two weeks’.

The country had already raised $1.77 billion short-term commercial loansfrom various foreign banks, mainly Chinese, against a target of $1 billionfor the current fiscal year of 2017/18.

With the upcoming transaction, total short-term debt might go close to $3billion mark.