ISLAMABAD: The government is focused on building foreign exchange reserves, and various plans including floating of sovereign bonds, increasing remittances and disinvestment of public sector entities are in process.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said this here on Thursday during a meeting with a delegation of Crédit Suisse led by its managing director Ali Abbas Alam.

The minister said that a favourable environment was reflected by the booming stock market and added that a positive outlook by the Overseas International Chamber of Commerce presents investors a unique opportunity to invest in Pakistan.

The delegation informed the minister that there was an increasing interest of international capital markets in Pakistan with a very strong appetite for holding the country’s securities as is reflected in continuously declining yields of the existing Pakistani bonds listed abroad.

Mr. Dar was further informed that the investors looked forward to the planned issue of Pakistan Euro-Bonds and the initiatives for accessing international markets.

On the occasion, the finance minister thanked Crédit Suisse for participating in a consortium for providing balance of payment loan of $225 million to Pakistan.

The meeting was attended by Arif Habib, Chairman Arif Habib Securities and Crédit Suisse’s senior management including Ali Naqvi (Head of Equities for Asia-Pacific) and Rehan Anwar (Managing Director Investment Banking, Singapore).

Senior officials of the ministry of finance were also present at the meeting.