Saudi, China roll overs part of $27 billion of foreign loans to Pakistan, says Govt report

Pakistan was able to get $9 billion in roll-overs from two of its closest allies, Saudi Arabia and China, adding up to the total of $ 27 billion foreign loans in the last fiscal year, a Government report has said.

Pakistan’s reliance on foreign loans to stabilise the economy grew in the last fiscal year 2025/26, with around $27 billion recorded in foreign loans, up from the foreign loans of approximately $26 billion in the fiscal year 2024/25, the provisional foreign economic assistance report by the Ministry of Economic Affairs has said.

The report shows that the $27 billion includes fresh loans of $16 billion, including a fresh loan of $3 billion from Saudi Arabia in deposits, besides extending the $5 billion facility for another three years.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said this week that Pakistan has officially secured the rollover of the $3 billion deposit as well alongside the original $5 billion with the State Bank of Pakistan.

In the fiscal year 2025/26, Pakistan got $5 billion in rollovers from Saudi Arabia and $4 billion in rollovers on deposits from China, the provisional foreign economic assistance report, released last week, said.

Saudi Arabia has placed a total of $8 billion in cash deposits with Pakistan’s central bank, charging 4 per cent to 4.5 per cent interest, while China has placed USD 4 billion in cash deposits, charging over 6 per cent interest, it added.

The loans have been taken mainly to finance the budget, retire debt and build foreign exchange reserves, the report said.

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves took a hit earlier this year when it repaid a total of $3.45 billion in deposits to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in late April.