An IMF delegation led by Director Middle East and Central Asia Department, Jihad Azour, called on the Governor State Bank Dr Reza Baqir here Thursday.
Azour was accompanied by the IMF Mission Chief to Pakistan, Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, Resident Representative of IMF for Pakistan, Teresa Daban Sanchez and Special Assistant to the Director of the IMF's Communications Department Olga Stankovam According to a statement issued by the SBP, during the meeting, Dr Baqir shared SBP's views on the economy with the IMF delegation.
He informed the IMF delegation that Pakistan has embarked on its homegrown economic reform program and looked forward to a continuing fruitful partnership with the IMF and other stakeholders in the international financial community to support this reform program.
Governor SBP said that the transition to a market-based exchange rate system, building foreign exchange reserves, and bringing down inflation were key elements of the SBP's reform program to restore financial stability and lay the foundation for sustainable and shared growth. "The initial results from the SBP's reform program were encouraging and the earlier volatility in the exchange market and associated uncertainty had subsided and confidence was slowly improving," he added.
Discussing inflation, he said that inflation had risen due to the economic imbalances accumulated from previous years; however, he hoped that inflationary pressures were expected to recede in the second half of the current fiscal year.
The Governor SBP emphasized that these were the early stages of the reform process and it was essential to sustain the reform momentum and to keep policies focused on securing stability and promoting sustainable and shared growth.
In his discussions with the SBP, Jihad Azour shared his views on how central banks in the region were responding to the challenges being faced by them particularly with regard to capital flows, the role of technology, and the role of central banks in economic management, amongst other areas.
He also looked forward to a continuing partnership with the State Bank.
The IMF delegation also met with senior management of the SBP.