KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Governor Jameel Ahmad has revealed that the country has received a record $28.07 billion from overseas Pakistanis during the current financial year.
Addressing a ceremony on Monday, at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) here, the Governor SBP went on to say that total remittances in the first nine months of the financial year 2024-25 were 33 per cent higher compared to the same period a year ago.
The governor said remittances from overseas Pakistani were up by nearly 40 per cent year-on-year in February 2025, to $3.12 billion. The country received a record $4.1 billion during March, he added.
According to SBP data, Pakistanis living in Saudi Arabia remitted the highest $987 million during March, followed by $842 million from the UAE, $684 million from the UK and $419 million from the US.
Governor Jameel Ahmad stated that the government had been striving for economic stability of the country and contacted the corporate sector to reduce the financial gap.
He said whenever he talked about the economy, he kept in mind the state of the country in 2022.
The governor said the CPI index last month showed that inflation fell to a historic low of 0.7 per cent from a peak of 38 per cent in May 2023.
Governor Jameel Ahmad mentioned two issues that have been plaguing the national economy: inflation, and foreign loan. He noted that foreign exchange reserves have soared above $14 billion. The currency exchange rate has improved. Inflation has come down as per the expectations of the Monetary Policy Committee.
He noted that the country’s economic activity has “revived”. If the agriculture sector matched last year’s performance, the GDP growth would reach 4.2 per cent. But, due to a lower-than-expected agricultural season, the GDP growth is projected in the range between 2.5 per cent and 3 per cent.
He stressed the need for working together with the corporate sector and mentioned that they are also working on the economic development side in collaboration with the stock exchange.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his pleasure as foreign remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis in a month crossed the $4 billion mark for the first time in the country’s history, terming it a reflection of their trust in the government’s policies.
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