Pakistan Central Bank Head Downplays Politics, Pledges Stability
- SBP raised interest rates by 250 basis points last week
- Pakistan working to draw $3 billion balance from IMF loan
Reza Baqir
Photographer: Asim Hafeez/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Pakistan’s top central banker pledged policy actions “on a timely basis” to ensure stability amid a political shakeup and deteriorating economy.
The comments Monday from State Bank of Pakistan Governor Reza Baqir come as lawmakers are set to choose Shehbaz Sharif as prime minister after Imran Khan was ousted in a no-confidence vote. Khan’s downfall was accelerated by inflation running faster than 12%, the rupee trading near a record low to the dollar and foreign reserves shrinking to levels only able to cover a couple of months of imports.