Islamabad (NNI) Pakistan’s public debt rose by 6.7% during the first nine months of the current fiscal year, exceeding Rs. 76 trillion, according to the Economic Survey 2024–25. The total comprises Rs. 51.518 trillion in domestic debt and Rs. 24.489 trillion in external debt.
Interest payments alone consumed 66% of the full-year budget estimate, amounting to Rs. 6.439 trillion, of which Rs. 5.783 trillion was paid on domestic debt. Total debt servicing from July to March stood at Rs. 6.439 trillion—lower than the same period last year—primarily due to an improvement in the primary fiscal surplus.
To reduce pressure from short-term repayments and lengthen the maturity profile of debt, the government relied on long-term instruments such as Pakistan Investment Bonds (PIBs) and Sukuk. As part of this strategy, Rs. 2.4 trillion worth of Treasury Bills (T-Bills) were retired, while new instruments including a two-year zero-coupon PIB and a ten-year Sukuk were introduced.
Pakistan’s external debt stood at USD 87.4 billion at the end of March 2025, showing an increase of approximately USD 883 million over the first nine months of the fiscal year. The bulk of this external debt is long-term and concessional, sourced primarily from multilateral and bilateral partners.
