Dollar ends near Rs208 in interbank; Rupee fall continues

Dollar ends near Rs208 in interbank; Rupee fall continues

KARACHI: The US dollar ended near Rs208 as the Pakistan Rupee (PKR) continued depreciation on Wednesday in interbank foreign exchange market.

The exchange rate recorded a decline of Rs1.05 in rupee value to end at Rs207.99 to the dollar from previous day’s closing of Rs206.94 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

READ MORE: Rupee sharply falls Rs206.94 to dollar in interbank

The local currency fell for the second straight day after making a recovery on the first trading day i.e. July 04, 2022.

The rupee recorded an all-time low Rs211.93 to the dollar on June 22, 2022.

Currency experts said that market witnessed advance demand for dollars due to long holidays ahead. The government has announced July 8 to July 12 as Eid holidays.

READ MORE: Rupee falls 46 paisas to dollar despite Chinese inflows

The local currency ended the fiscal year 2021/2022 with a massive decline of 30 per cent against the dollar. The exchange rate witnessed a decline of Rs47.31 or 30 per cent from Rs157.54 on the start of July 01, 2021 to the closing of Rs204.85 on June 30, 2022.

During the year the currency was under pressure due to higher economic demand, political instability and severe balance of payment crisis.

READ MORE: Dollar gains 25 paisas to PKR on forex reserves decline

The rupee is making recovery after the country received $2.3 billion from Chinese banks. Furthermore, reports of finalization of agreement between Pakistan and IMF also supported the rupee. The country is expecting an inflow of around $1.9 billion from the IMF.

The rupee remained under pressure against the greenback during the current fiscal year. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has taken various measures to support balance of payment and the local currency. However, the measures ended in a failure to help the rupee to recover losses.

READ MORE: Dollar retreats to Rs207.23 at interbank closing

The SBP on May 23, 2022 announced a sharp increase in policy rate by 150 basis points to 13.75 per cent from 12.25 per cent.

In addition to that the government announced a complete ban on imports to support balance of payment and help the rupee to stabilize. But all these measures appeared in failure as the exchange rate yet again deteriorated today massively.

READ MORE: Rupee slips to new low at Rs211.93 against dollar