Pakistan's public debt surges to Rs 40.3 trillion by end of October

Pakistan's public debt increased by 4 per cent at the end of October 2021, the central bank data showed on Monday and analysts said that rising interest rate is likely to drive debt servicing costs higher in months ahead.

Analysts said rising interest rate is likely to drive debt servicing cost higher in months ahead.

The public debt amounted to Rs 40.3 trillion by the end of October. It came at Rs 38.7 trillion in June. The debt surged 13.44 per cent year on year. It stood at Rs 35.5 trillion at the end of October 2020, reported The News International.

The data released by the State Bank of Pakistan has shown that the external debt originated from multilateral and commercial creditors, rose to Rs 13.811 trillion from Rs 12.433 trillion.

Expressing concern over rising public debt, analysts have said that high borrowing costs as a result of a hike in interest rates could be a source of worry for the Imran Khan government.

As of October, the debt represented 74.8 per cent of the gross domestic product compared with 81.1 per cent of GDP in June.

The increasing gap between the expenditure and revenues high-interest payments, currency depreciation, and the accumulation of foreign currency reserves through borrowing resulted in the massive size of public debt, said The News International.

( With inputs from ANI )

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