Pakistani officials say the executive board of the International Fund has approved a new $7 billion loan for the country.

The International Monetary Fund’s board (IMF) on Wednesday approved a $7 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Pakistan, providing a critical boost to the country’s struggling economy.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a $7bn (£5.25bn) loan to cash-strapped Pakistan. The country is due to receive the first $1bn of the loan immediately, with the balance to be paid out over the next three years.

Pakistan secured final approval to start a $7 billion loan program from the International Monetary Fund, unlocking crucial financing to sustain the nation’s recovery from a crisis.

Pakistan has received "significant financing assurances" from China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates linked to a new International Monetary Fund program that go beyond a deal to roll over $12 billion in bilateral loans owed to them by Islamabad,

Pakistan said Thursday it would have to go through "transitional pain" after the International Monetary Fund agreed to a new relief package of $7 billion to bolster its faltering economy.

Pakistan's benchmark share index hit a life-time high in opening trade on Thursday, hours after the International Monetary Fund's board approved a long-awaited $7 billion bailout deal for the struggling economy.