Pakistan forex reserves rise to $12.181 billion

Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves rose by $22 million to $12.181 billion in the week ended Sept. 11 mainly because of an increase in inflows to commercial banks, the central bank said on Friday. During the week, reserves held by commercial banks rose to $2.176 billion from $2.158 billion a week earlier, the central bank said.

The reserves held by the the State Bank of Pakistan also rose slightly to $10.005 billion from $10 billion a weak earlier. The country's forex reserves have increased steadily since 2001, partly due to higher remittances from expatriate Pakistanis through official channels after a crackdown on money laundering that followed the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States in 2001…