Total outstanding external debt and liabilities owed by Pakistan's public and private sectors to foreign creditors.
Source: SBP, 'External Debt and Liabilities — Outstanding' (pakdebt_Arch.xls), quarterly, total of categories A through E.
Pakistan's total external debt and liabilities figure combines everything the country's public sector (government and SBP), public sector enterprises, and private sector owe to foreign creditors — multilateral lenders like the IMF and World Bank, bilateral government loans, commercial banks, Eurobonds, and foreign direct investment-related liabilities.
This is the debt stock — the total amount outstanding at a point in time — not the annual debt servicing cost (principal and interest repayments due in a given year), which is a separate, smaller figure.
Pakistan's external debt has grown substantially since 2016, driven by a combination of persistent current account deficits requiring external financing, currency depreciation (which raises the Rupee value of Dollar-denominated debt), and continued borrowing to meet financing gaps.
A rising debt stock against flat or falling foreign exchange reserves signals growing repayment pressure relative to the buffer available to meet it — one of the most closely watched solvency signals for an emerging-market economy like Pakistan's.
External debt sustainability is central to Pakistan's recurring IMF program negotiations — a debt level seen as unsustainable relative to GDP or export earnings raises the risk of a credit rating downgrade or a balance-of-payments crisis.