ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday welcomed Pakistan’s Triple C Plus rating by global credit rating agency Fitch.
In a statement, PM Shehbaz commended the hard work and efforts of Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and the finance team for this achievement.
The Prime Minister said the country and the nation are getting the fruits of the sacrifice of politics for the sake of the state today in the form of economic improvement.
PM Shehbaz said the international rating of triple C plus is a global recognition of the prudent economic policy of the government.
The Prime Minister said his government is working day and night on the agenda of economic reforms and it will not take a backseat before delivering the dividends of this policy to the people.
PM Shehbaz said reports of Fitch and other international financial institutions are important for the economic improvement of Pakistan.
The Prime Minister expressed the resolve to move forward on the path of economic improvement of Pakistan with more effort and passion. He hoped that the new IMF program would further strengthen Pakistan’s efforts for economic improvement.
Earlier today, Fitch Ratings upgraded Pakistan’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) to ‘CCC+’ from ‘CCC’. “This upgrade reflects increased confidence over continued external funding, supported by Pakistan’s staff-level agreement (SLA) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a new 37-month, $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF)”, the statement said.
The upgrade is attributed to strong performance under the previous IMF arrangement, which helped Pakistan’s fiscal deficits and rebuild foreign exchange reserves. Fitch expects the IMF Board to approve the new $7 billion program by the end of August. However, Pakistan must secure new funding assurances from bilateral partners.
Fitch forecasted the current account deficit (CAD) to stay relatively contained at about $4 billion (about 1% of GDP) in FY25, after about $700 million in FY24, given tight financing conditions and subdued domestic demand.
On the external front, Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves have improved. The SBP is rebuilding reserves, with official gross reserves estimated to have risen to over $15 billion in June 2024, and expected to reach nearly $22 billion by the end of FY26.
