Pakistan's rupee registers 0.14% gain against US dollar

Pakistan's rupee appreciated 0.14% against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Friday.

As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee closed at 176.67 against the USD after a day-on-day appreciation of 25 paisas or 0.14%, compared to Thursday when the currency depreciated 0.10%.

Last week, the PKR had closed at its all-time record low of 178.24 against the USD before appreciating the following two days to end the year at 176.51.

Against USD: Pakistan's rupee weakens yet again

The rupee has swung both ways during the outgoing week, owing to Pakistan's trade deficit widening by 106.4% during the first half (July-December) of the current fiscal year 2021-22, reaching $25.478 billion. However, news that the IMF board is set to review Pakistan's Extended Fund Facility (EFF) on January 12 seems to have given the currency some level of strength on Friday.

Meanwhile, market expert AAH Soomro, former managing director at KASB Securities, commented that the value of US dollar has increased globally but its impact against the rupee has been considerably higher owing to the rising import bill.

“US Dollar Index has already appreciated 7% from the bottom of ~89 in May 2021 to ~96 in Jan 2022. During the same period PKR has depreciated from Rs152 in May 2021 to Rs177 in Jan 2022,” said Soomro.

“Naturally, there is more pressure on PKR due to higher import bills, increased inflation and trade deficits,” he added.

Soomro said that an appreciation of PKR towards early Rs171 could be a reasonable reversal.

He added that trade deficit numbers have probably peaked out but ‘remain sticky’. He was optimistic that the next few months should show moderation of the deficit leading to currency stability.

Internationally, US dollar retreated slightly on Friday but was still on course to gain over the week before the release of US labour data that investors think could reinforce the case for early Federal Reserve interest rate hikes.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against major peers, was down 0.14% at 96.126 and set for weekly gains of about 0.5%.

Inter-bank market rates for dollar on Friday

BID Rs 176.50

OFFER Rs 176.60

Open-market movement

In the open market, the PKR lost 30 paisas for buying and 50 paisas for selling against USD, closing at 178.50 and 179.50, respectively.

Against Euro, the PKR lost 20 paisas for buying and 50 paisas for selling, closing at 199.70 and 201.50, respectively.

Against UAE Dirham, the PKR gained 10 paisas for both buying and selling, closing at 49.50 and 49.90, respectively.

Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 10 paisas for both buying and selling, closing at 46.90 and 47.30, respectively.

Open-market rates for dollar on Friday

BID Rs 178.50

OFFER Rs 179.50