ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The National Assembly was informed on Friday that Islamabad International Airport will be outsourced for 15 years after a competitive bidding process.
In his speech on the floor of the National Assembly, the Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Ishaq Dar has said that the Country’s foreign exchange reserves have reached US$ 14 billion as a result of government’s efforts.
Ishaq Dar said that US$ 8.7 billion are in possession of the State Bank of Pakistan and US$ 5.3 billion are held by the Commercial Banks.
Total liquid foreign #reserves held by the country stood at US$ 14.07 billion as of July 14, 2023.
For details https://t.co/WpSgomnKT3#SBPReserves pic.twitter.com/V2taELWR1T— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) July 20, 2023
Referring to the US$ 3 billion stand by arrangement reached with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the financial assistance extended by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), he said that we have made all the external payments in a timely manner.
The finance minister said that it will be our effort to further enhance our foreign exchange reserves.
The minister made it clear that no new tax is being imposed on the Agriculture and Construction Sectors, clarifying that the federal government has already delivered on IMF’s prior actions and announced taxation measures of Rs 215 billion in the winding up budget speech.
Ishaq Dar added that it is our effort to bring down the inflation. He said that according to State Bank of Pakistan, the inflation will come down to 7% in two years’ time if the consistency in policies continued.