‘No chance of default,’ Pakistan says it will repay external debt 'on time'

Dar estimated the country’s current account deficit would be at $6 billion at the end of June 2023, half that of an earlier projection.

Pakistan’s Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said the government will fulfill its external debt commitments including the repayment of a sukuk bond that’s due in the first week of December.

Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif. (AP)

“There is no chance of default. Repayment will be done on time,” he said in a televised message on Saturday, adding that arrangements for debt repayments for next year have been done “in principle.”

Dar estimated the country’s current account deficit would be at $6 billion at the end of June 2023, half that of an earlier projection. He said the deficit is expected to be less than $400 million in October.

The finance minister also rejected the possibility of fuel shortages in the country amid political uncertainty triggered by former premier Imran Khan’s months-long campaign for snap elections to be held.

Khan announced on Saturday he will hold a rally in Islamabad on Nov. 26 as the last leg of the protest campaign.