Factbox-Crisis-hit Pakistan’s macroeconomic indicators

(Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund has asked for more time for negotiations with Pakistan over a deal that would unlock much-needed funds from a $6.5 billion programme.

Below are four key economic indicators of the cash-strapped country.

Forex reserves

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have fallen to the lowest level in 10 years and cover only three weeks’ worth of imports.

In the week ending Feb. 3, the central bank’s foreign currency reserves shrank to $2.917 billion, down $170 million from the previous week.

Inflation

Inflation has averaged a record 25.4% in the seven months of the current fiscal year starting July versus 10.3% in the same period of the previous year. The consumer price index rose 27.5% year-on-year in January, its highest in nearly half a century.

Last month, the central bank raised its key interest rate by 100 basis points to 17% in a bid to rein in persistently high inflation, and said achieving price stability was key to attaining sustainable economic growth in the future.

The bank has raised the key rate by a total 725 bps since January 2022.

Current account deficit

Pakistan’s current account deficit shrank to around $400 million in December 2022 from $1.9 billion a year earlier, as the government slashed imports in a bid to avert an external payments crisis.

Pakistani rupee

The rupee reached a record low of 276.58 to the dollar in the interbank market on Feb. 3. The rupee has dropped more than 35% in the last 12 months.

(Reporting by Aftab Ahmed; Editing by Miral Fahmi, Raju Gopalakrishnan and Jan Harvey)