Lahore: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has recorded an all-time high inflow of foreign investments in government securities, a news source reported. As per the publication, the central bank recorded foreign investments worth USD 3.045 billion in various government securities, including Government of Pakistan Market Treasury Bills (T-Bills) and Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs).
According to SBP sources, most of the investment inflow
arrived in T-Bills and was worth USD 2.959 billion — with USD 3.009 billion
inflows and USD 50.7 million outflows. On the other hand, the investment in
PIBs was worth USD 35 million during the ongoing fiscal year.
Additionally, after the exclusion of USD 50 million
outflows, the total foreign investment in government papers stood at USD 2.995
billion at the end of the previous week in the Special Convertible Rupee
Account (SCRA).
As per analysts, this positive change comes after the economic policies of the incumbent government. They stated that the policies led to a better exchange rate and current account. Due to these changes, there has been heavy investment activity from the US and UK in government securities.
The analysts opined that the Foreign Portfolio Investment
(FPI) into government securities would help increase the country’s foreign
exchange reserves, along with supporting the Balance of Payment (BoP).
In a recent report, SBP had stated that the better investment inflows were a result of continued enhancement of Pakistan’s BoP position, sustainability of the exchange rate regime, and reserve buffers. Additionally, the report indicated that the inception of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme also provided comfort to the investors.
Furthermore, the SBP clarified that it has also been closely
monitoring the foreign investment inflows in government securities in order to
avoid any risks.
