A New Meaning For "Financial Armageddon"

clipped from www.qando.net Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves are so low that the country can only afford one month of imports and faces possible bankruptcy. Officially, the central bank holds $8.14 billion (£4.65 billion) of foreign currency, but if forward liabilities are included, the real reserves may be only $3 billion - enough to buy about 30 days of imports like oil and food. Nine months ago, Pakistan had $16 bn in the coffers. The government is engulfed by crises left behind by Pervez Musharraf, the military ruler who resigned the presidency in August. High oil prices have combined with endemic corruption and mismanagement to inflict huge damage on the economy. The price-tag to rescue them? About 100 billion. As mentioned, Pakistan is a critical ally in the war against the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan. It is also has nuclear weapons and a rather large population of radical Islamists who would love nothing better than to get their hands on them.