Pakistan, IMF reach staff-level agreement

Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund have reached a staff-level agreement on second and final review under the Stand-By Arrangement today.  The agreement has paved the way for the release of the final $1.1 billion tranche from the IMF.

The head of the IMF team said that they had reached a staff-level agreement with the Pakistani on the second and final review of Islamabad’s stabilization program supported by $3 billion SBA approved in January 2024 (Press Release No. 23/261).

Nathan Porter further said that this agreement is subject to approval by the IMF’s Executive Board, upon which the remaining access under the SBA, US$1.1 billion (SDR 828 million), will become available.

He, however, warned that economic growth would remain modest in the ongoing financial year, adding inflation is still above target.

Porter stressed implementation of ongoing policy and reform to resolve Pakistan’s economic vulnerabilities amidst the ongoing challenges.

About the Shehbaz-led government, the IMF said the new government was ready to follow the policy efforts, which were launched in the SBA for the remaining year.