WORLD NEWS | Pakistan’s most difficult situation in almost 20 years: report

Islamabad [Pakistan]China News Service, February 20 (Xinhua) According to South Asia News Agency, the current situation in Pakistan is the most difficult situation the country has faced in the past two decades. It also said that the country is facing economic crisis, political chaos, and rising terrorist numbers. The attacks in the northwest have exhausted its resources.

Furthermore, according to the report, the country’s economic deterioration has a direct impact on the public.

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Floods in Pakistan have dealt a heavy blow to the cash-strapped country already saddled with high debt, South Asia Press reported, adding that the country’s planning board, agriculture, food, livestock and fisheries sectors were lost in the floods Long-term losses of $3.7 billion are estimated at approximately $9.24 billion.

The country’s inflation rate stood at 24.5 percent in December 2022, almost double the previous year’s 12.3 percent, the report said, adding that ordinary people were the most affected by high flour prices during the worst period on record for the country. crisis.

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There were even stampedes to loot grain and flour in many parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and Baluchistan provinces. Analysts fear the crisis will soon swallow oil products and basic necessities.

Some experts also hinted that petrol and diesel rationing could be imposed in the next two to three months, eventually hitting trade and industry, and even the agricultural sector, which needs diesel during the harvest season, South Asia Press reported.

The report further notes that the twin budget and balance of payments deficits have been managed in the past through engagement with bilateral donors and multilateral institutions, adding that about half of the $7 billion in loans provided by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 2019 Disbursed.

International agencies say the country’s problems are the result of the government’s continued struggle to make ends meet and not mobilize domestic resources. Delays in the release of the IMF’s next tranche are exacerbating the country’s problems, the report said.

Without any inflows from the IMF or friendly countries, the country’s central bank’s foreign exchange reserves fell to $4.34 billion in the week to Jan. 6, the lowest level since February 2014 .

According to analysts, these reserves are not even enough to cover a month’s worth of imports.

Islam Khabar recently reported that the ongoing financial crisis in Pakistan and the economic slowdown in China appear to be having an impact on the progress of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.

CPEC projects launched a decade ago were seen as a harbinger of Pakistan’s prosperity, the report said, adding that seven years later, many projects under CPEC are still not launched, while some of those operating projects have become liabilities and are incurring losses. (Arnie)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)