Central govt debt jumps by 14.6% to Rs41.6tr in December

February 25, 2022 (MLN): The total debt of the central government during the month of December 2021 surged by Rs5.28 trillion or 14.6% YoY to clock in at Rs41.56tr against Rs36.27tr recorded in December 2020, the data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) showed on Thursday.

The rising debt burden may be attributed to continuous 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 that clocked in at Rs26.75tr, signifying a growth of around 10% YoY, comprising of Rs21tr long-term debt and Rs5.64tr short term debt while the remaining was external.

By the end of December 2021, the government’s long-term debt increased by 9.3% YoY when compared to Rs19.27tr recorded in the same period a year ago.

Similarly, the short-term debt jumped by 12% YoY as opposed to Rs5.04tr in December 2020.

Within the long-term domestic debt, the Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) accounted for Rs15.17tr. Meanwhile, in the short-term domestic debt, Market Treasury Bills (MTBs) amounted to Rs5.59tr, up by 11% YoY.

Borrowing through Naya Pakistan Schemes witnessed a more than seven-fold increase to Rs39.6bn as of December 2021, compared to Rs5.2bn in December 2020.

A breakup of the central government external debt shows that nearly Rs14.6tr came from long-term loans while Rs225bn came from short-term loans.

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