Pakistan reaches about $2B deal with IMF

Pakistan has reached a much-awaited deal with the IMF that will bring a total disbursement of about $2 billion to the cash-strapped South Asian country, the government and the loaning agency said.

Speaking at a Cabinet meeting in capital Islamabad, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday confirmed a new $1.3 billion arrangement with the IMF, along with a successful first review of the ongoing 37-month bailout program.

Pending the IMF board approval, the government can unlock the $1.3 billion under a new climate resilience loan program spanning 28 months.

The staff-level agreement will also free $1 billion for the country under a $7 billion bailout program the two sides agreed upon last year.

"The IMF team has reached a staff-level agreement (SLA) with the Pakistani authorities on the first review of the 37-month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and on a new 28-month arrangement under the IMF's (Resilience and Sustainability Trust) with total access over the 28 months of around $1.3 billion," Nathan Porter, mission chief to Pakistan, said in a statement.

"Over the past 18 months, Pakistan has made significant progress in restoring macroeconomic stability and rebuilding confidence despite a challenging global environment," Porter added.

Upon approval by the IMF board, Islamabad will have access to about $1 billion under the EFF, bringing total disbursements under the program to about $2 billion, he went on to say.