June 20, 2007	Wednesday	Jamadi-us-Sani 04, 1428

KARACHI, June 19: Foreign investors kept on showing confidence in Pakistan, and made a record investment of $5.6 billion in the last 11 months of the current financial year.

The latest figures issued by the State Bank of Pakistan on Tuesday showed that the country would receive over $6 billion by the end of the year as average per month inflow remained $511 million.

While the country estimated that the trade deficit would reach $13 billion by the end of the current fiscal 2006-07, foreign exchange inflows could produce a soothing impact for the government finding no way to improve its trade balance.

Foreign private investment, including the portfolio investment, reached $5.628 billion during the 11 months which is 58.8 per cent higher than the last year.

Foreign direct investment also set a record with a wide margin by increasing its contribution to $4.521 billion which was 40 per cent higher than the 11 months of the previous year.

During the same period, portfolio investment reached $1.107 billion compared to $331 million during the corresponding 11 months of the previous year.

The government had issued global depository receipts (GDR) of the OGDC worth $738m during the same period. If the GDR is considered, the total foreign inflows reached about $6.2 billion.

Overseas Pakistanis have also geared up their effort to pool more dollars in the country’s foreign exchange basket, having a big hole of trade and current account deficit.

During the last 11 months, remittances sent by the overseas workers reached $4.988 billion which were 20.59 per cent higher than the corresponding period of last year.

“The foreign investment which landed into the country was not for short-term investment and the sectors which received the investment also have a solid footing in the country,” said an analyst who did not see any change in the trend of foreign investment into the country despite political upheavals.

Analysts said both inflow of foreign private investment and remittances would bridge the huge trade gap which could be around $13 billion.

The major chunk of foreign investment came into the telecommunications, banking, oil and gas exploration and power sector.

Analysts said these sectors are least affected by political crisis in any country.

Analysts said all these sectors have yielded huge profits for investors and attraction is still very strong.

Power sector might be the biggest attraction next year as the government is trying to increase electricity production capacity to meet its rising economic growth.

Other figures of 11 months showed that telecommunications attracted $1.482 billion, financial business $896.7 million, oil and gas exploration $479 million, tobacco $388.5 million, power sector $167.7 million and construction $146 million.

The government could meet the huge trade gap with the two inflows while it has already launched Euro bond which pushed the country’s foreign exchange reserves at $15 billion.