KARACHI: Rupee decreased marginally against the US dollar during the previous week as it lost Re0.09 or 0.3% in the inter-bank market.
The local unit closed at 278.56, against 278.47 it had closed the week earlier against the greenback, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
In a key development, Pakistan’s headline inflation clocked in at 4.1% on a year-on-year basis in December 2024, a reading below that of November 2024 when it stood at 4.9%, showed Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) data released during the previous week.
On a month-on-month basis, CPI increased by 0.1% in December 2024 as compared to 0.5% in the previous month and an increase of 0.8% in December 2023.
Pakistan’s gross domestic product (GDP) posted a growth of 0.92% in the first quarter (July-September) of fiscal year 2024-25, estimates released by the PBS showed. The growth in agriculture, industry and services stood at 1.15%, -1.03% and 1.43%, respectively.
The government unveiled ‘Uraan Pakistan’, a five-year national economic plan aimed at steering the country toward sustainable growth. The plan has been designed to avoid pitfalls of previous initiatives for the country’s economy, according to the Ministry of Planning.
Meanwhile, foreign exchange reserves held by the SBP decreased by $143 million on a weekly basis, clocking in at $11.71 billion as of December 27. Total liquid foreign reserves held by the country stood at $16.41 billion. Net foreign reserves held by commercial banks stood at $4.70 billion.
Open-market rates
In the open market, the PKR lost 26 paise for buying and 34 paise for selling against USD, closing at 278.07 and 279.85, respectively.
Against Euro, the PKR gained 2.35 rupees for buying and 1.82 rupee for selling, closing at 285.72 and 288.30, respectively.
Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 10 paise for both buying and selling, closing at 75.66 and 76.15, respectively.
Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 13 paise for buying and 10 paise for selling, closing at 73.98 and 74.45, respectively.
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THE RUPEE
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Weekly inter-bank market rates for dollar
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Bid Close Rs. 278.56
Offer Close Rs. 278.76
Bid Open Rs. 278.47
Offer Open Rs. 278.67
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Weekly open-market rates for dollar
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Bid Close Rs. 278.07
Offer Close Rs. 279.85
Bid Open Rs. 277.81
Offer Open Rs. 279.51
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Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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