KARACHI: Pakistani rupee recovered 20 paisas (+0.12pc) against the US dollar in the inter-bank on Tuesday.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the US dollar opened at Rs168.72 and closed at Rs168.52. Within the open market, the rupee was traded at Rs168.80/169.80 per dollar.
Pakistani rupee shed Rs0.33 during the last days against the US dollar, while depreciation during the fiscal year 2021-22 has been Rs11.08. The local unit has shed Rs8.25 against the US dollar in the current year 2021. The local currency has maintained a downtrend after it touched a 22-month high of Rs152.27 in May 2021, losing a cumulative Rs16.21 in the past four months to date.
According to experts, the market witnessed inflows of export receipts and workers’ remittances during the day. They said that the external payment pressure had kept the higher demand for the greenback. The experts said that due to quarter ending, the dollar’s demand for external payment of import and corporate payments remained high.
They said the country has posted a current account deficit and trade deficit during the first two months of the current fiscal year, which also put pressure on dollar demand. The current account deficit has widened to $2.29 billion during the first two months of the current fiscal year. They said the rupee is under immense pressure due to unfavourable macroeconomic data and Afghanistan’s situation.
