Government debt trending downward, external debt down by Rs 492 billion in five months

Karachi: According to the latest report of the State Bank of Pakistan, there has been an overall downward trend in the volume of federal government debt during the first five months of the current fiscal year, mainly due to significant repayment of external debt.
According to the central bank’s data, the government’s external debt decreased by Rs 492 billion between July and November 2025, while local debt increased by Rs 147 billion during the same period.
The report states that although the government took new debt overall in the month of November, debt pressure remained balanced due to repayment of external liabilities.
Economists say that reducing external debt can help ease pressure on foreign exchange reserves, but increasing domestic debt could pose a challenge to fiscal discipline in the future.