ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar has said that the sale of Eurobonds has offered a number of economic gains for the country including revival of investors’ confidence.
He added that the bond value of a maximum of 8.25% for 10 years will also reduce interest liability and increase space in the budget for priority investments. Currently, the government is paying 12.28% on local investment bonds.
Pakistan will have phenomenal savings of around $90 million per annum by shifting its debt from domestic to foreign. The bonds have been sold to a host of countries around the world. Portfolio investments by American, European and Asian countries represent global confidence. These funds will hopefully be spent in the priority sectors that have long been neglected by successive governments in the past, said Ishaq Dar.
“This is a major achievement of the incumbent government. We should be hopeful of economic revival for the benefit of the people and businesses in Pakistan,” the finance minister said.
Pakistan sold two bonds – one for 5 years and the other for 10 years – with $1 billion each, when it was the time of falling foreign reserves because it is currently repaying its international loan obligations more than what it is receiving and requires to finance budget deficits. The bond sale increased foreign exchange reserves close to $12 billion and relieved pressure on the Rupee, which now has the highest value in the past two years.
