Qatar plans $3B investment in Pakistan as PM Sharif visits Doha

The Qatar Investment Authority aims to invest $3 billion in Pakistan, Qatar's Emiri Diwan has said, lending support to the South Asian nation's cash-strapped economy.

"The Qatar Investment Authority announced its aspiration to invest $3 billion in various commercial and investment sectors in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan," the Emiri Diwan said on Wednesday, without giving details.

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.

"His Highness stressed the importance of the brotherly and strategic relations between the two countries and their aspiration to enhance economic partnership by raising trade exchange and promoting investments through the Qatar Investment Authority," Emiri Diwan said.

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. 

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Pakistan PM visits Qatar

The prime minister's visit to Qatar precedes an International Monetary Fund meeting next week that is expected to approve more than $1 billion in financing that has been stalled since the beginning of the year.

Sharif on Tuesday invited QIA, Qatar's $450 billion sovereign wealth fund, to invest in Pakistan's energy and aviation sectors.

He had previously said he would highlight sectors including renewable energy, food security, industrial and infrastructure development, tourism and hospitality.

Sources close to Sharif have said he was expected to offer Qatar shares in state-owned enterprises including the loss-making Pakistan International Airlines and the Roosevelt Hotel in New York.

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