Pakistan’s outstanding external debt, liabilities reach $137.5bn in Q3FY26

May 13, 2026 (MLN): Pakistan’s external debt and liabilities (outstanding) reached $137.56bn at the end of Q3FY26, reflecting a decrease of $469m or 0.34% QoQ, the central bank data showed on Wednesday.

On a yearly basis, the country’s external debt and liabilities went up by $7.461bn or 5.73% YoY during Q3FY26 as the figure stood at $130.097bn at the end of Q3FY25.

According to the latest data issued by the SBP, 75.8% of the entire debt is attributed to public external debt; the combination of the government’s long-term and short-term external debt, IMF loans to the central bank, and foreign exchange liabilities.

The government's external debt stood at $82.26bn during Q3FY26, reflecting a decrease of 0.55% QoQ, while going up by 3.96% YoY.

Within the external debt, the long-term debt by the end of the respective quarter stood at $68.41bn, down by 16.2% QoQ and 12.5% YoY.

Meanwhile, the short-term debt (less than one year) increased  to $13.853bn compared to the $949m recorded in the same period last year.

The data further shows that International Monetary Fund (IMF's) loans to the central bank and federal government stood at $3.62bn and $6.271bn respectively during the quarter under review.

The foreign exchange liabilities outstanding during the period under review were recorded at $12.114bn, up by 0.28% QoQ and 2.46% YoY.

Apart from public external debt, the remaining outstanding amount comprises borrowing from public sector enterprises, banks, and the private sector.

Outstanding external debt of public sector enterprises (PSEs) clocked in at $7.891bn, up by 0.43% QoQ and 3.92% YoY.

The amount owed to banks stood at $8.446bn during the review period, in which short-term bank borrowing stood at $1.57bn, while long term borrowing was recorded at $1.369bn in the quarter under review.

Private sector debt, which attributed 8.41% of the total external debt amounted to $11.571bn.

The last element of the total external debt and liabilities was debt liabilities to direct investors (Intercompany debt) which stood at $5.385bn.

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