Punjab budgetary borrowings edge over Rs17b

KARACHI - Deficit-driven Punjab government’s budgetary financing availed from the banking system swelled by Rs7 billion during July-3rd April FY10.
The government of Punjab, as of April 03, 2010, borrowed Rs17.981 billion from the SBP and scheduled banks to meet its hefty budgetary expenses mainly stemmed from high subsidy spending and aggressive commodity operations.
In the same period of last fiscal year, such borrowings stood at Rs10.539b. However, the budget related borrowings obtained by Sindh, Balochistan and NWFP provincial governments comparatively come down in July-April FY10.
A look at the recent reserve monetary aggregates posted by SBP on its website revealed that the share of the Punjab’s borrowings in total loans disbursed by the banks to the main components of the government sector including other three provinces and central government was highest except Azad Jammu Kashmir during the reported months of current financial year. According to SBP data, the government sector borrowings declined to Rs61.596 billion in July-April 2009-10 from Rs111.71 billion during the corresponding period last year.
The central government borrowed Rs62.416 billion during the period under review, compared with Rs113.75 billion in the equivalent period of previous fiscal year while the provincial governments financing by the financial system slashed from Rs12.237 billion in the July-April FY10 to Rs5.993 billion.
The scheduled banks disbursed Rs8.490 billion as against of Rs1.280 billion to the Balochistan, Rs3.447 billion compared with Rs501 million to NWFP and Rs51million versus Rs20.994 billion to Sindh governments respectively during the analytical period of prevailing FY10. The break-up of monetary statistics showed that the growth in reserve money sharply increased by 8.68 per cent in July-April FY10, amounting Rs130.876 from 2.31pc and Rs34.138b in the preceding year. Consequently, growth in Net Foreign Assets (NFA) and Net Domestic Assets plunged by 4.45 per cent compared to 20.51 per cent to 78.167 and 52.709 billion rupees of the last financial year.

Source: http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Business/20-Apr-2010/Punjab-budgetary-borrowings-edge-over-Rs17b