ISLAMABAD, July 11 (Xinhua): Pakistan has received the first tranche of 991.4 million US dollars from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) under its 6.0 billion US dollar loan programme for Pakistan, a spokesperson for the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) confirmed on Wednesday.
The spokesperson told media that the central bank received the loan last week, adding that the arrival of money would help in building the depleting foreign exchange reserves of Pakistan and support balance of payment.
Pakistan will receive a total of 6 billion US dollars loan package over a period of three years from the IMF, local media reported.
Earlier, Adviser to the Pakistani prime minister on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs Abdul Hafeez Shaikh said the IMF board approved the bailout package for Pakistan to support the country's economic reform programme.
"The loan will contribute to reducing imbalances in the economy while protecting the most vulnerable segments of the society," said the adviser.
The IMF has reportedly imposed a condition, among others, to bring the country's primary budget deficit to 0.6 per cent of GDP from the current 1.9 per cent.
Local economic experts believed that the IMF condition would require a massive escalation in revenue collection and a significant decline in expenditure.
A team from the IMF will visit Pakistan every three months to review the economic indicators for the release of the remaining installments, the reports said.
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