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IMF Influence in Pakistan Grows With Central Bank Appointments

IMF Influence in Pakistan Grows With Central Bank Appointments

(Bloomberg) --

The International Monetary Fund’s influence in Pakistan’s central bank got another boost with the appointment of a second senior official from the fund.

Murtaza Syed was appointed as deputy governor at the State Bank of Pakistan for a three-year term, according to a finance ministry notification. Syed was previously deputy division chief in the IMF’s strategy, policy, and review department and was involved with country-level programs.

Prime Minister Imran Khan last year named IMF economist Reza Baqir as the central bank governor as part of an overhaul of top finance posts to help stabilize the economy. The same year, South Asia’s second-largest economy won a $6 billion support program from the fund.

The economy has since posted early successes, prompting an upgrade of its credit rating outlook by Moody’s Investors Service that cited narrowing current account deficit and lower external vulnerability risks.

To contact the reporter on this story: Faseeh Mangi in Karachi at fmangi@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Nasreen Seria at nseria@bloomberg.net, Karthikeyan Sundaram, Khalid Qayum

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