28/05/2022
FATF & WORLD BANK MAY TRY TO FIND MONEY TRAIL OF $ 10.6 Billion PROPERTIES BEFOR DISBURSEMENT NEW LOAN TO PAKISTAN.
While Pakistan's economy continues to scare away foreign investments, data suggests the country's super-rich owns over 38,000 properties worth $10.6 billion in Dubai's offshore real estate market, which is more than Pakistan's State Bank dollar reserves
Pakistanโs central bank reserves have fallen to a 23-month low, decreasing by $190 million to $10.308 billion.
Whereas the countryโs foreign exchange reserves decreased by $178 million or 1.1 per cent in the week ended May 6, standing at $16.376 billion.
The decline was attributed to outflows related to external debt repayments. Analysts estimate the central bankโs latest reserves can cover imports for 1.54 months.
The report cited the bankโs data and reported that inflows clocked in at $16.4 billion from $16.5 billion a week earlier.
The falling reserves put pressure on the currency as it plunged to an all-time low of Rs199.25 per dollar in the interbank market.
The main owners of Dubai real estate in absolute terms are large neighboring countries such as India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Russia, and several large, often English-speaking economies like the UK, US, Canada, China, Germany, and France.
The paper notes that offshore real estate in Dubai is massive, with at least $146 billion in foreign wealth invested in the property market.
