Central govt debt surges to over Rs78tr in July

September 18, 2025 (MLN): The total debt of the central government went up by 12.37% YoY to Rs78.24 trillion in July 2025, compared to Rs69.62tr in July 2024, the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed.

Moreover, on a sequential basis, the central government debt rose by 0.45% MoM compared to Rs77.89tr in June 2025.

The year-on-year increase in debt burden is primarily attributed to borrowing from domestic and foreign sources to cover the fiscal deficit.

As per details made available by SBP, the larger portion of the debt was domestic and stood at Rs54.99tr, comprising Rs46.19tr long-term debt, Rs8.73tr short-term debt and the remaining Rs71.44bn through Naya Pakistan Certificates.

The figures reported by the central bank for the domestic debt reflect an increase of 15.24% YoY and on a sequential basis a increase of 0.95%

By the end of July 2025, the government’s long-term debt surged by 24.87% YoY to Rs46.19tr as compared to Rs36.99tr recorded in the same period a year ago, while rising 1.18% MoM.

Conversely, the short-term debt decreased by -17.96% YoY to Rs8.73tr in the review month.

Within the long-term domestic debt, the Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) accounted for the majority proportion and stood at Rs35.57tr, Up by 26.34% YoY and 1.57% MoM.

Meanwhile, in the short-term domestic debt, Market Treasury Bills (MTBs) were the dominant source of borrowing, amounting to Rs8.61tr, Down by 18.48% YoY and 0.37% MoM.

Borrowing through Naya Pakistan Certificates has declined by 18.93% YoY to stand at Rs71.44bn in July 2025.

Comparison on a monthly metric shows that in July, the government borrowed 15.34% more through these certificates compared to Rs61.94bn in the previous month.

A breakup of the central government's external debt shows that nearly Rs23.02tr came from long-term loans while Rs230.8bn came from short-term loans.

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