Last Updated on: 3rd July 2023, 11:48 pm
The Pak rupee continued its downtrend, falling to its nine-month low against the US dollar on Monday due to growing demand for natural import payments and the growing strength of the US dollar in international markets.
The rupee fell to 161.48 rupees against the US dollar for the first time since mid-October 2020.
Today, PKR is trading between Rs. 160 and Fr. 161.60 before closing at Rs. 161.48 per dollar today (July 19), lower than the Friday, July 16 exchange rate of Rs. 159, 93 for a dollar.
In the interbank foreign exchange market, PKR lost 1% or Rs. 1.54 per dollar during this period, while in the free market the deterioration is more pronounced, around Rs 1.70, the dollar s’ traded at almost Rs. 162 on the open market.
The rupee continued its downtrend against the US dollar on Monday amid rising demand for natural import payments. PKR continued its losing streak against the USD almost consistently since the start of the current fiscal year, with rare and sporadic improvements.
Also Read: Pak Rupee Finally Appreciated Versus US Dollar in the Open Market
Asad Rizvi, former treasurer of Chase Manhattan Bank, said earlier today: “We have 2 business days in Pakistan this week. The golf market remains closed. This means that no transfers from countries in the Middle East are expected.”
He continued, “The market made an aggressive bid today in a good-sized US dollar to cover the position due to the upcoming Eid holiday. Banks do not seem willing to keep their position open due to the recent extreme volatility. The PKR has lost almost 5.5% of its value since reaching highs of 152.90.”
Asad added, “The Eid holiday is an annual routine, but it will put pressure on it. So I don’t see any respite for the next 7-10 days.”
Traders expect the rupee to gradually appreciate after the Eid holiday, trading between 159 and 160 levels, a Tresmark analyst said.
PKR also had a bad day against other major currencies in the interbank forex market, with overall losses other than nominal appreciation against the Canadian dollar (CAD).
The PKR was up 12.89 paisa against the CAD today.
Also Read: Pak Rupee Posts Back-to-Back Losses Versus The US Dollar
Apart from that, it was significantly reduced by Rs. 1.45 against Euro, 9 countries against British Pound (GBP), and 13.24 against the Australian Dollar (AUD).
The PKR has also deteriorated significantly in the current interbank currency market by 42 countries and 41 countries against the United Arab Emirates dirham (AED) and Saudi riyal (SAR).
