Pakistan`s remittances remained over $2 billion in March for the 10th month in a row, the country`s central bank said. 
 
The remittances rose to $2.7 billion in March 2021, which was 20 per cent higher than those of February and 43 per cent higher than those of March 2020, Xinhua news agency quoted a statement by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) issued on Monday as saying. 
 
"Cumulatively during July-March of FY21 (from July 2020 to June 2021), remittances have risen to $21.5 billion, up by 26 per cent over the same period of FY20," the statement said. 
 
The central bank termed proactive policy measures by the government and the SBP to encourage more inflows through formal banking channels, limited cross-border travel in the face of Covid-19, medical expenses and altruistic transfers to Pakistan amidst the pandemic as the main reasons for the increasing remittances. 
 
"Orderly foreign exchange market conditions are also continuing to contribute to this sustained rise in workers` remittances," said the statement. 
 
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday hailed the increase in the remittances and expressed gratitude to overseas Pakistanis for their support.

Pakistan`s remittances remained over $2 billion in March for the 10th month in a row, the country`s central bank said. The remittances rose to $2.7 billion in March 2021, which was 20 per cent higher than those of February and 43 per cent higher than those of March 2020, Xinhua news agency quoted a statement by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) issued on Monday as saying.

Pakistan`s remittances remained over $2 billion in March for the 10th month in a row, the country`s central bank said. The remittances rose to $2.7 billion in March 2021, which was 20 per cent higher than those of February and 43 per cent higher than those of March 2020, Xinhua news agency quoted a statement by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) issued on Monday as saying. "Cumulatively during July-March of FY21 (from July 2020 to June 2021), remittances have risen to $21.5 billion, up by 26 per cent over the same period of FY20," the statement said. The central bank termed proactive policy measures by the government and the SBP to encourage more inflows through formal banking channels, limited cross-border travel in the face of Covid-19, medical expenses and altruistic transfers to Pakistan amidst the pandemic as the main reasons for the increasing remittances. "Orderly foreign exchange market conditions are also continuing to contribute to this sustained rise in workers` remittances," said the statement. Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday hailed the increase in the remittances and expressed gratitude to overseas Pakistanis for their support.

Pakistan's remittances remain over $2 billion for 10th month

China is on a spending spree, building roads and buying influence and now it has bought an entire country. It is called Pakistan, the latest colony of the People's Republic of China.&nbsp;

China has invested billions in Pakistan as a result of which Pakistan owes more money to China than it owes to the IMF.&nbsp;

The China Pakistan Economic Corridor — or CPEC — is turning out to be a road to financial hell for Pakistan which is in the middle of an economic crisis.&nbsp;

Slowed down projects, missed deadlines, unavailability of cash and China's refusal to give more credit has led Pakistan into doing what it does best - ask for more money.&nbsp;

The Imran Khan government has turned to its neighbourhood for help.&nbsp;

Using marketing to hide its financial crisis, Pakistan is now selling a new proposal called 'CPEC Plus'.

The pitch is that Iran, UAE and Saudi Arabia should invest and become partners in the infrastructure projects.

Pakistan wants more people using CPEC, only then, can it hope to make enough money to pay back its lender - China.

The plan is quite simple, Pakistan will offer land to these countries, who should put in money to build railway lines and highways.

Since CPEC is proving to be a black hole for funds, it looks financially unviable, the projected revenues won't even cover loan payments.

Under Imran Khan, the progress on CPEC has been even slower, making China impatient which is now controlling not just the business but also the government of Pakistan.&nbsp;

China is deciding the makeup of the Pakistan cabinet and even sacking Pakistani ministers.&nbsp;

Last month, Pakistan missed the deadline to put the CPEC projects back on track, leading Beijing to jump in, who met officials from the Imran Khan government.

Some of these ministers were not playing ball, so, China had them fired from the position.&nbsp;

Case in point - Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar who was the minister of planning and development for Pakistan.

According to reports Bakhtiyar met with the Chinese two weeks ago, to get more financial commitments from China.

Bakhtiyar's failure led to China wanting him out immediately, which further led to his replacement into some other portfolio, out of China's way.&nbsp;

This amounts to the kind of control that China now has on Pakistan.

China can switch ministers at whim and Bakhtiar's case is only the beginning.&nbsp;

Reports say China has a long hit list and most likely it will have its way.&nbsp;

China is on a spending spree, building roads and buying influence and now it has bought an entire country. It is called Pakistan, the latest colony of the People's Republic of China.

China is on a spending spree, building roads and buying influence and now it has bought an entire country. It is called Pakistan, the latest colony of the People's Republic of China. China has invested billions in Pakistan as a result of which Pakistan owes more money to China than it owes to the IMF. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor — or CPEC — is turning out to be a road to financial hell for Pakistan which is in the middle of an economic crisis. Slowed down projects, missed deadlines, unavailability of cash and China's refusal to give more credit has led Pakistan into doing what it does best - ask for more money. The Imran Khan government has turned to its neighbourhood for help. Using marketing to hide its financial crisis, Pakistan is now selling a new proposal called 'CPEC Plus'. The pitch is that Iran, UAE and Saudi Arabia should invest and become partners in the infrastructure projects. Pakistan wants more people using CPEC, only then, can it hope to make enough money to pay back its lender - China. The plan is quite simple, Pakistan will offer land to these countries, who should put in money to build railway lines and highways. Since CPEC is proving to be a black hole for funds, it looks financially unviable, the projected revenues won't even cover loan payments. Under Imran Khan, the progress on CPEC has been even slower, making China impatient which is now controlling not just the business but also the government of Pakistan. China is deciding the makeup of the Pakistan cabinet and even sacking Pakistani ministers. Last month, Pakistan missed the deadline to put the CPEC projects back on track, leading Beijing to jump in, who met officials from the Imran Khan government. Some of these ministers were not playing ball, so, China had them fired from the position. Case in point - Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar who was the minister of planning and development for Pakistan. According to reports Bakhtiyar met with the Chinese two weeks ago, to get more financial commitments from China. Bakhtiyar's failure led to China wanting him out immediately, which further led to his replacement into some other portfolio, out of China's way. This amounts to the kind of control that China now has on Pakistan. China can switch ministers at whim and Bakhtiar's case is only the beginning. Reports say China has a long hit list and most likely it will have its way.

Pakistan trapped under debt, owes more money to China than IMF

The truth about CPEC is that it's a debt trap. The project has been controversial from the word go.

It was launched four years ago. The corridor is ridden with pitfalls and virtually no profits so far and its proving to be a long road to disaster.&nbsp;

In the year 2015, several ministers and government officials, led by Nawaz Sharif queued up to welcome Xi Jinping in Pakistan.

The Chinese president was there to unveil the "China-Pakistan economic corridor". A multi-billion-dollar plan that would transform Pakistan into a regional economic hub.&nbsp;

Four years later, the story of CPEC is quite different. It has failed to live up to the hype.

CPEC projects have slowed under Imran Khan. The cricketer-turned-politician began his prime ministership by ordering a comprehensive review.

"I think we should put everything on hold for a year so that we can get our act together. Perhaps we can stretch CPEC out over another five years or so", that's the reasoning that Pakistan's Minister for Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood gave last year.

The Imran Khan government maintained that they were not too happy with some contracts.

But, the problems are much deeper. The biggest concern is the security of the project. Terrorists have been targeting Chinese investments and citizens.

In May, three gunmen stormed a five-star hotel killing five people. The Pearl Continental hotel is being developed by China.

It's in Gwadar, home to the deep seaport that is the crown jewel of CPEC.

The biggest opposition is coming from Balochistan. The people there oppose Chinese investments. The Baloch people fear that they will become a minority in their own province if CPEC is allowed to go through.

Baloch nationalists have threatened and carried out attacks on Chinese installations.

China has invested too much in CPEC to back down now. Beijing has demanded security for Chinese nationals from Islamabad.

More than 17 thousand security personnel have been deployed for this purpose. But, china remains unhappy. Its investments still face the terror threat.

So Beijing is taking matters into their own hands. Some reports claim that Chinese troops have been spotted near CPEC projects.

By 2022, it plans to have its own city in Gwadar that will accommodate half a million Chinese citizens.

China is the clear beneficiary of CPEC. It will have its workforce working in Pakistan. Locals will have few job opportunities.

The bill for CPEC runs into billions of dollars. Almost all of the money for the projects is loaned from China and just like Sri Lanka, Pakistan is firmly caught in the dragon's debt trap.

The truth about CPEC is that it's a debt trap. The project has been controversial from the word go. It was launched four years ago. The corridor is ridden with pitfalls and virtually no profits so far and its proving to be a long road to disaster.

The truth about CPEC is that it's a debt trap. The project has been controversial from the word go. It was launched four years ago. The corridor is ridden with pitfalls and virtually no profits so far and its proving to be a long road to disaster. In the year 2015, several ministers and government officials, led by Nawaz Sharif queued up to welcome Xi Jinping in Pakistan. The Chinese president was there to unveil the "China-Pakistan economic corridor". A multi-billion-dollar plan that would transform Pakistan into a regional economic hub. Four years later, the story of CPEC is quite different. It has failed to live up to the hype. CPEC projects have slowed under Imran Khan. The cricketer-turned-politician began his prime ministership by ordering a comprehensive review. "I think we should put everything on hold for a year so that we can get our act together. Perhaps we can stretch CPEC out over another five years or so", that's the reasoning that Pakistan's Minister for Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood gave last year. The Imran Khan government maintained that they were not too happy with some contracts. But, the problems are much deeper. The biggest concern is the security of the project. Terrorists have been targeting Chinese investments and citizens. In May, three gunmen stormed a five-star hotel killing five people. The Pearl Continental hotel is being developed by China. It's in Gwadar, home to the deep seaport that is the crown jewel of CPEC. The biggest opposition is coming from Balochistan. The people there oppose Chinese investments. The Baloch people fear that they will become a minority in their own province if CPEC is allowed to go through. Baloch nationalists have threatened and carried out attacks on Chinese installations. China has invested too much in CPEC to back down now. Beijing has demanded security for Chinese nationals from Islamabad. More than 17 thousand security personnel have been deployed for this purpose. But, china remains unhappy. Its investments still face the terror threat. So Beijing is taking matters into their own hands. Some reports claim that Chinese troops have been spotted near CPEC projects. By 2022, it plans to have its own city in Gwadar that will accommodate half a million Chinese citizens. China is the clear beneficiary of CPEC. It will have its workforce working in Pakistan. Locals will have few job opportunities. The bill for CPEC runs into billions of dollars. Almost all of the money for the projects is loaned from China and just like Sri Lanka, Pakistan is firmly caught in the dragon's debt trap.

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