Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said Pakistan has raised $3 billion through a Eurobond launch and remains in a “comfortable position” on its external accounts after the United States declined a request for a $10 billion Liquidity Support Program.
Speaking after a Senate Standing Committee on Finance meeting at Parliament House in Islamabad on Wednesday, he told senators that Islamabad can manage with or without the US package. He described the American facility as a request, not a credit line or guarantee, and said support would be welcome but was not essential for external-account management.
Eurobond proceeds and Saudi rollover
Aurangzeb confirmed that Saudi Arabia had rolled over $3 billion for Pakistan but declined to state how long the extension covers. A Eurobond is a government or company bond sold to international investors in a currency other than the issuer’s own—here, a route for Pakistan to raise hard currency from global markets.
He told the committee the government is pursuing macroeconomic stability, retiring short-term debt, improving the debt profile and seeking better credit ratings so future borrowing costs fall.
What the finance secretary told senators
Federal Secretary Finance Imdad Ullah Bosal briefed the panel, chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla. He said Pakistan’s gross external financing repayments stood at $21.5 billion—$17 billion as principal and $4 billion as interest—and that $7.3 billion takes the form of bilateral rollovers, without giving a full public breakdown in the session.
Reports around the briefing put that rollover pool at about $4 billion in SAFE deposits from China (funds held by China’s foreign-exchange authority), $3 billion from Saudi Arabia and $300 million from Kuwait. Saudi deposits were described as totalling $8 billion, with $5 billion on a medium-term rollover through 2028 and the remaining $3 billion possibly extended for one year into FY27.
Excluding the $7.3 billion rollover, Bosal put remaining external debt repayment at $14 billion, including $3.2 billion of commercial refinancing that Pakistan may skip because of its cost. The Finance Ministry said the government had already repaid $5 billion in five months of the fiscal year and expects to repay $6 billion in the remaining seven months. Bosal also said debt-servicing costs rose 28 percent in FY23, driven mainly by the rupee’s fall against the dollar.
Aurangzeb outlined the Annual Borrowing Plan: projected public debt of Rs86.7 trillion, additional borrowing of Rs6.86 trillion and gross financing needs of Rs28.65 trillion. The committee heard that public debt had eased from 75.1 percent of GDP in FY2023 to 68.6 percent in FY2026, and that the country can meet roughly $5 billion in debt-servicing over the next six months while holding foreign exchange reserves of $21.5 billion.
Separately, Mandviwalla asked the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)—the country’s central bank—to review rules that force parliamentarians seeking foreign exchange for personal travel to appear in person at exchange companies and clear Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) checks even when passports, tickets and visas are already submitted.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- FY2023: Public debt was 75.1 percent of GDP; debt-servicing costs rose 28 percent amid rupee depreciation.
- FY2026: Public debt was reported at 68.6 percent of GDP.
- Wednesday (Senate briefing): Aurangzeb said a $3 billion Eurobond had been secured and that the US had declined a $10 billion liquidity request; a Saudi $3 billion rollover was confirmed without a stated term.
- Next six months: Officials said about $5 billion in debt-servicing can be met while reserves stay near $21.5 billion.
- Through 2028: $5 billion of Saudi deposits was described as rolled over on a medium-term basis.
- FY27: The remaining $3 billion Saudi deposit was described as possibly on a one-year rollover.
Aasan alfaaz mein
America ne Pakistan ki $10 billion ki madad ki darkhwast nahi mani. Wazir-e-Khazana Aurangzeb ne kaha ke Pakistan ne Eurobond se $3 billion hasil kar liye hain. Saudi Arab ne bhi $3 billion ka rollover diya hai. Unke mutabiq, bahar ke hisaab abhi sambhale ja sakte hain—is se rupay aur imports par dabao kam rehne ki ummeed hoti hai.
