Lahore: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has recorded an increase in net foreign investments in various sectors of the country during Financial Year (FY) 2019-20, a news source reported.
According to SBP, the net foreign investment inflows
increased to USD 3.425 billion, registering a growth of 541%. Various sectors,
including government papers and stock exchange, recorded these investment
inflows from the period of July to January of the current fiscal year. Last
year, the inflows stood at USD 534.7 million during the same period.
On the other hand, the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) levels also increased with investment in the country’s real sector. These investments grew to USD 1.563 billion from July to January of FY 2019-20. In comparison, this figure stood at USD 943 million during the previous financial year for the same period.
As per the SBP data, investments from China increased to
more than USD 500 million under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)
project’s second phase.
Meanwhile, SBP also recorded significant growth in foreign
portfolio investments. It recorded a large amount of investments from fund
managers in the UK and the USA.
SBP stated that foreign investors made investments worth USD 1.613 billion in the available investment avenues of the country during the January 2020. It added that this improved the overall FDI number to a record level in the recent years.
The central bank expects the investment inflows to real
sectors and debt securities to continue to increase – mainly due to CPEC
projects and lucrative profit rates on government securities. Experts believe
that this trend would further improve investor interest in Pakistan, and help
to revive business activities with an improved pace.
