US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday warned that any potential IMF bailout for Pakistan’s incoming government should not provide funds to pay off Chinese lenders. In response, Pakistan’s Finance Ministry sought to de-couple the link between any potential IMF bailout and Beijing’s loans for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which spans mostly energy and transport infrastructure. “First and foremost it is totally wrong to link the IMF package with CPEC. Many analysts and business leaders expect that another IMF bailout, the second in five years, will be needed to plug an external financing gap. On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said the IMF had its own standards and operating rules when cooperating with countries.

Source: Pakistan Today August 01, 2018 09:22 UTC