November 15, 2003	Saturday	Ramazan 19, 1424

SINGAPORE, Nov 14: Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services on Friday assigned its ‘BB-’ long-term local currency debt rating to three Pakistan Investment Bonds totalling Rs28 billion ($479 million) that were issued on Nov 6, 2003.

These newly-rated bonds carry coupon rates of 6pc, 7pc, and 8pc, and mature in November 2006, 2008, and 2013, respectively.

Standard & Poor’s sovereign credit ratings on Pakistan are: foreign currency ‘B/B’ and local currency ‘BB-/B’. The outlook on the long-term sovereign ratings is stable.

The new ratings assigned to Pakistan Investment Bonds as follows: Rs5.9 billion 6pc due Nov 6, 2006, BB-; Rs10.1 billion 7pc due Nov 5, 2008, BB-; Rs11.5 billion 8pc due Nov 5, 2013, BB-.

“The ratings on Pakistan are supported by its comfortable external liquidity position, and progress made in economic stabilization,” said Standard & Poor’s sovereign credit analyst, Chih Wai Liew.

Foreign exchange reserves have risen to more than $10 billion at the end of October 2003, and are expected to continue rising in the coming months.

At the same time, relations with official creditors, including the US, have remained on an even keel, thanks to the government’s support for the US-led war against terrorism. The structural reform agenda has also remained broadly on track.

In October 2003, the government tabled its long-awaited Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation Bill in parliament for approval. The passage of this bill is a positive step as it would enhance government’s fiscal accountability, and confer parliamentary support for the government’s debt reduction strategy.

In addition, the government has increased the pace of its privatization programme in recent months. Particularly noteworthy is the invitation to potential investors to acquire up to 73 per cent of the equity in the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC; one of the two main state-owned utilities that are draining the government’s financial resources).—Reuters