Saudi Arabia to invest USD 1 billion in Pakistan

Saudi Arabia will invest USD 1 billion in Pakistan to support the cash-strapped country's ailing economy, the Gulf Kingdom's Foreign Minister told his Pakistani counterpart during a telephonic conversation on Thursday.

King Salman has directed to make investments worth USD 1 billion in Pakistan, the state-run Saudi Press Agency reported.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan informed his Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto Zardari about the King's directive during a phone call on Thursday, it said.

During the telephonic conversation, the two leaders discussed ways to further enhance the strong bilateral relations between their countries. They also reviewed the major regional and international issues of common interest, the agency said.

Bilawal expressed his gratitude to his Saudi counterpart and informed him about the devastation caused by the devastating floods in Pakistan.

Cash-starved Pakistan is facing growing economic challenges, with high inflation, sliding forex reserves, a widening current account deficit and a depreciating currency.

With the rising current account deficit at USD 13.2 billion in the first nine months and pressing external loan repayment requirements, Pakistan required financial assistance of USD 9-12 billion till June 2022 to avert further depletion of foreign currency reserves.