SBP governor says Pakistan not considering bilateral debt restructuring, sources claim
Business
Claim negates Dar's statement at post-budget press conference
KARACHI (Reuters/Web Desk) – State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad said the country was not considering a bilateral debt restructuring, Reuters reported while quoting sources that attended an analyst briefing following the monetary policy decision.
"As of now there is no plan to enter into any debt restructuring," the sources cited Mr Ahmad as saying.
"Absolutely no doubt about it. We are not considering any such plan, so there is no question of what will be the haircut," he added.
The statement is quite opposite to what Finance Minister Ishaq Dar had said after presenting the 2023-24 budget, as he told a press conference that government was working on the possibility of restructuring its bilateral debt regardless of whether it successfully completed its IMF review.
"We'll see how things go," Dar had told reporters at the post-budget press conference, referring to whether to restructure or reprofile debt as Pakistan continues to speak with the IMF about its stalled bailout funds.
However, the finance minister reiterated that Pakistan would not approach Paris club nation creditors or seek haircuts. "In either case we will talk to bilateral creditors," he added.
