THE International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that its executive board approved a US$1 bil disbursement to Pakistan on Wednesday following a sixth review of the country’s reforms under its US$6 bil loan programme.
This disbursement brings Pakistan’s total draw against the Extended Fund Facility programme for budget support to about US$3 bil, which was initially approved in July 2019.
Quickening inflation
Pakistan’s consumer price index (CPI) rose 13% in January from a year earlier, the official statistics bureau said on Tuesday (Feb 1), the highest in two years.
In December, the inflation figure was 12.3%, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics said in a news release.
The country’s central bank paused monetary tightening last week, saying inflation momentum had slowed and fiscal tightening by the government would also have an effect on rising prices.
The central bank had increased the main policy rate by 275 basis points since September in the face of accelerating inflation but last week said it would hold the rate to see the effects its earlier measures had on rising prices.
The next monetary policy announcement is expected in March.
Compared to December 2021, CPI rose 0.4% in January, the statistics bureau statement said.
The increase in CPI compared to last January was led foremost by electricity costs, which went up by 56.20% year-on-year, and cooking oils, which rose 50.33%.
Compared to December 2021, however, electricity prices fell in January by 2.52%, the statistics bureau said.
Rising fuel and electricity costs have put increasing pressure on the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan. – Feb 3, 2022
