ISLAMABAD: After a slight depreciation of 4 paisa during the previous day’s trading, the Pakistani Rupee gained 07 paisa on Tuesday against the US Dollar in the interbank trading to settle at Rs 278.29 against the previous day closing at Rs 278.36.
Meanwhile, according to the Forex Association of Pakistan (FAP), the buying and selling price of the greenback in the open market were traded at Rs 277.25 and Rs 279.9 respectively.
Unlike the US dollar, the price of the Euro went up by Rs 1.17 against the local unit to close at Rs 302.84 as compared to Rs 301.67, the previous day according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
The Japanese Yen increased 02 paisa to close at Rs 1.79, while the British Pound witnessed an increase of Rs 1.75 to settle at Rs 355.60 against the previous day’s closing of Rs 353.85.
The price of the Emirates Dirham and the Saudi Riyal went down by 01 paisa each to close at Rs 75.77 and Rs 74.20 respectively.
Pakistani Rupee Against US Dollar
During the last 7 to 8 months, the Pakistani currency witnessed both appreciation and depreciation, against the US dollar with recent continued improvement. From September, till the middle of October 2023, the local currency appreciated for a record 28 consecutive sessions against the greenback, followed by a continuous decline for 17th consecutive sessions from October till the middle of November, 2023.
However at the end of December 2023, and then in January 2024, the local currency mostly registered appreciation against the greenback amid the inflow from the IMF followed by a $2b rollover each from the UAE (January) and China (February). As a result, the Pakistani rupee improved by over Rs7 in the interbank during the last three to four months.
In another recent development, Pakistan received $1.1 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as a final tranche of the $3 billion Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), on April 30, 2024. Pakistan is now flexing muscles to get a longer program from the IMF to further overcome the current economic challenges. However, the expected program might be coupled with further inflation and price hikes amid tough conditions from the lending body in the shape of further taxation.
