Qatar Investment Authority aims to invest $3B in Pakistan
The Qatar Investment Authority aims to invest $3 billion in Pakistan, the Qatari ruler’s office said on Wednesday, lending support to the South Asian nation’s cash-strapped economy.
Pakistan is in economic turmoil and faces a balance of payments crisis, with foreign reserves having dropped as low as $7.8 billion, barely enough for more than a month of imports. It is also contending with a widening current account deficit, weakening rupee currency, and inflation that exceeded 24% in July.
The announcement was made during a visit to Doha by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who held official talks with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani on Wednesday after a meeting with the QIA on Tuesday.
Doha has shown interest in airport management partnership and the Roosevelt Hotel in New York’s Manhattan owned by the Pakistan International Airlines, two Pakistani aviation officials involved in the talks told Reuters.
The officials said Pakistan has offered a 25% stake in the hotel. It shut down in late 2020 during the slump in travel caused by the coronavirus pandemic and has remained closed, in part due to lack of financing and management disputes.
