Overview

• The IMF team is expected to start the programme’s second review this month, with dates kept confidential for security reasons.
• Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced on September 15 a relief package that includes waiving August electricity bills for all domestic consumers.
• The government told lawmakers it will seek IMF approval for the electricity-bill waiver before implementation.
• Reporting indicates the Fund favors targeted assistance and may push to route support through the Benazir Income Support Programme.
• Officials and analysts warn that unapproved concessions risk delaying the next IMF tranche and jeopardizing over $12 billion in creditor rollovers, as flood damage is preliminarily estimated at up to $40 billion and growth had been cut to 3.6 percent in April.