China has increased its economic sway in Pakistan during the past year, providing more than $1bn in loans to help its neighbour stave off a currency crisis.
中國在過去一年加大對巴基斯坦的經濟影響力,提供逾10億美元貸款以幫助這個鄰國避免一場貨幣危機。
State-backed Chinese banks have twice come to the rescue of the nuclear-armed state, officials have told the Financial Times, with $900m in 2016 and $300m in the first three months of this year.
官員們告訴英國《金融時報》,國家支持的中資銀行兩度救助擁有核武的巴基斯坦,2016年提供了9億美元,今年頭三個月提供了3億美元。
The loans demonstrate the perilous fragility of Pakistan’s stocks of foreign currency, depleted in recent months by rising imports and falls in exports and remittances from Pakistanis abroad.
這些貸款顯示出巴基斯坦外匯儲備的脆弱性,近幾個月由于進口上升、出口下降以及海外巴基斯坦人減少匯款回家而趨于枯竭。
China’s financial help also underlines an increasingly close relationship at a time of strains between Pakistan and the US.
在巴基斯坦與美國關系緊張之際,中國的財務援助也突顯了中巴兩國日益密切的關系。
Beijing is preparing to invest at least $52bn in Pakistan to build a highway, energy pipelines, power-generation facilities and industrial parks from the western port of Gwadar on the Gulf to the Chinese border to the north.
北京方面正準備在巴基斯坦投資至少520億美元,沿著從該國西部瀕臨波斯灣的瓜德爾港到北部巴中邊境的路線,建造一條高速公路,以及若干能源管道、發(fā)電設施和工業(yè)園區(qū)。
But despite its expected benefits, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor infrastructure project is set to further deplete the foreign currency stocks, needed to pay contractors and suppliers.
但是,盡管有預期的好處,但中巴經濟走廊(China-Pakistan Economic Corridor)基建項目勢必進一步消耗巴基斯坦的外匯儲備,因為該國將需要向承包商和供應商付款。
Figures from the State Bank of Pakistan show the country had $17.1bn of net reserves at the end of February, down from $18.9bn at the end of October and a peak of $25bn several years ago.
巴基斯坦國家銀行(State Bank of Pakistan)的數(shù)據(jù)顯示,2月底該國凈外匯儲備為171億美元,低于去年10月底的189億美元,以及幾年前達到的250億美元的峰值。
This has forced the country to seek emergency loans from outside sources to repay older loans made in foreign currencies.
這迫使該國從外部來源尋求緊急貸款,以償還以外幣計價的較早貸款。
Of the $1.2bn from the Chinese institutions, $600m came from the government-run China Development Bank and $600m from the state-owned Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, the only mainland bank with a branch in Pakistan. Policy banks such as CDB often act on behalf of the central bank.
在中資機構提供的12億美元中,有6億美元來自中國國家開發(fā)銀行(CDB),還有6億美元來自國有控股的中國工商銀行(ICBC),后者是在巴基斯坦設有分行的唯一中資銀行。國開行等政策性銀行往往代表中國央行行事。
One Pakistani official said: “China keeps a very close eye on our economic trends and they’re happy to come to our help wherever needed.”
一位巴基斯坦官員說:“中國非常關注我們的經濟發(fā)展趨勢,他們樂意在需要的時候幫助我們。”
But experts warn that Pakistan is likely to have to return to institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, to which it sought recourse in 2013, for further support.
但是專家們警告說,巴基斯坦很可能不得不再度向國際貨幣基金組織(IMF)這樣的機構尋求進一步的支持;該國曾在2013年向IMF求助。
Vaqar Ahmed, deputy executive director of the Sustainable Development Policy Institute inIslamabad, said: “Technically speaking we should have gone back to the IMF in January, butministers are likely to try and wait until after the election [for parliament planned for 2018].”
伊斯蘭堡可持續(xù)發(fā)展政策研究所(SDPI)副執(zhí)行主任瓦加爾?艾哈邁德(Vaqar Ahmed)表示:“從技術上說,我們應該在1月份就再度向IMF求助,但是部長級官員們很可能會試圖拖到(計劃于2018年舉行的議會)選舉之后!
One member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz told the Financial Times ministers wereloath to turn to the IMF until after the election in an effort to limit the political fallout.
執(zhí)政的巴基斯坦穆斯林聯(lián)盟(謝里夫派)的一名成員告訴英國《金融時報》,為了限制政治沖擊波,部長級官員們極其不愿意在選舉之前向IMF求助。
“The IMF is a politically volatile issue in our country. If we go to the IMF to deal with our needs,that will send a very negative political signal and the opposition [parties] will use that againstthe government,” the person said.
“IMF在我國是一個政治敏感的問題。如果我們去找IMF來解決我們的需要,那將發(fā)出一個非常消極的政治信號,反對派政黨將借用這件事狠批政府,”此人表示。
It was only last year that Pakistan cleared the IMF debt incurred in 2013, a repayment that ledpolicymakers in Islamabad and abroad to express optimism about prospects for economicstability.
巴基斯坦只是在去年才還清了2013年欠下的IMF債務,此舉導致伊斯蘭堡及海外的政策制定者對經濟穩(wěn)定前景表示樂觀。
Christine Lagarde, the head of the IMF, called it a “moment of opportunity” for the country.
IMF總裁克里斯蒂娜?拉加德(Christine Lagarde)曾把這件事稱為該國的“機遇時刻”。