May 23, 2021 (MLN): The latest weekly roundup covers the latest economic and financial data releases over the past week to keep an eye on next week's trends.

• The total debt of the Central Government during the month of March 2021 surged by Rs2.7trillion or around 8% YoY to stand at Rs36.8tr when compared to Rs34.1tr recorded in March 2020.
• Pakistan’s External Debt and Liabilities reached nearly $116.39 billion during Jan-March FY21, an increase of $6.27bn or 6% YoY, the Central Bank data showed on Friday.
• The Weekly Sensitive Price Indicator (SPI) for the Combined Group increased by 0.82% during the week ended May 20, 2021 while the SPI increased by 17.23% compared to the corresponding period from last year.
• Pakistan witnessed Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) of $158.4 million during the month of April 2021 i.e. around 5.5% lower as compared to the net inflows of $167.6 million received in March 2021.
• Imports into Pakistan during April 2021 amounted to Rs. 805,180 million (provisional) as against Rs. 878,602 million (provisional) in March 2021 and Rs. 526,448 million during April 2020, showing a decrease of 8.36% over March 2021 but an increase of 52.95% over April 2020.
• Exports from Pakistan during April 2021 amounted to Rs. 339,618 million (provisional) as against Rs. 368,925 million (provisional) in March 2021 and Rs. 157,075 million during April 2020 showing a decrease of 7.94% over March 2021 but an increase of 116.21% over April 2020.
• The total import bill of the food group amounted to $778mn, marking an increase of 49.97% on a YoY basis against the same period of last year due to increased demand after the lockdown situation amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
• The import bill of the Machinery group has fallen by around 24% MoM to stand at $793 million in the month of April 2021. While it surged by 62% when compared to the corresponding period last year.
• The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Pakistan today signed a $300 million loan to finance the construction of a 300-megawatt hydropower plant in Balakot, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
• Textile exports during the month of April 2021, clocked in at US$1.34 billion that jumped by 3.31x YoY. When compared with the figures of the previous month, exports of textile goods depicted a marginal decline of 1.34% MoM.
• The Banking sector spread for April 2021 grown by 15 basis points (bps) over the month which brings its latest value to 4.46% as compared to the prior month's spread of 4.31%. In contrast, the spread has contracted by 72 bps as compared to the same period last year.
• Foreign Investors during the week ended May 07, 2021, sold net Rs7 billion, worth of securities i.e. around Rs.36.42 million lower than last week's numbers.
• State Bank of Pakistan has revised the Statutory Liquidity Reserve (SLR) requirement of Exchange Companies from 25% to 15% of their capital. The enhanced liquidity with exchange companies will enable them to further channel home remittances and foreign exchange.
• The government has reduced profits rates on almost all National Saving Schemes with immediate effect, the Ministry of Finance said in a notification.
• Workers’ remittances to Pakistan hit $2.8 billion in April 2021, the highest level on record with an increase of 56 percent from the same month a year ago.
• In order to provide substantial relief to the common man, government is on its toes to maintain the petroleum prices. It is evident from the fact that petroleum levy on diesel has been slashed by 64% since the beginning of CY21.
• The total money supply circulating within the economy by the end of March 2021 has been recorded at around Rs26.22trillion, according to provisional accounts on Monetary Aggregates for the month, maintained by the State Bank of Pakistan.
• At a CDWP meeting presided over by Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan, cleared four development projects with a cumulative estimated cost of Rs8.7billion & and recommended one project worth Rs17bn to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for further consideration.
• Pakistan's Forex Reserves increased by USD 167.70 Million or 0.74% and the total liquid foreign reserves held by the country stood at USD 22,910.30 Million on May 07, 2021.
• The sale of passenger cars during the month of April 2021 was recorded at 14,435 units against a total production of 14,416 units, which is around 15.60 percent lower as compared to the 17,105 units sold in March 2021.

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