The rupee managed to resist steep decline versus the dollar in both the open and interbank market during the week, ended on March 19, 2011. On the interbank market, the rupee inched up in terms of the dollar, gaining one paisa for buying at Rs85.44 and it also rose by four-paisa for selling at Rs85.46.
On the open, the rupee, however, shed 10-paisa in relation to the dollar for buying and selling at Rs85.40 and Rs85.55. The rupee followed the same print versus the euro, losing Rs 1.23 for buying and selling at Rs 120.40 and Rs 120.90 mainly because of single European currency's appreciation in the world market.
The rupee struggled hard to minimise it's losses against the dollar but it failed to do versus the euro as the single European currency went up against the world major currencies.
The rupee, which was under pressure due to higher demand for dollars, got support on easy supply of dollars otherwise, the domestic currency was not able to retain its level. According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) country's foreign exchange reserves went up to 17.61 billion dollars during the last week.
INTER-BANK MARKET RATES: On Monday, the rupee extended the weekend fall, losing more six-paisa and buying and selling at Rs85.51 and Rs85.56. On Tuesday, the rupee recovered 13-paisa in relation to the greenback for buying and selling at Rs85.38 and Rs85.43.
On Wednesday, the rupee shed nine-paisa against the dollar for buying and selling at Rs85.47 and Rs85.52. On Thursday, the rupee recovered nine-paisa against the dollar for buying and selling at Rs85.38 and Rs85.43.
On Friday, the rupee managed to gain six-paisa against the dollar for buying at Rs58.34 and it also rose by five-paisa for selling at Rs85.38.
On Saturday, the rupee gave up its overnight firmness in relation to the dollar, shedding 10-paisa for buying at Rs85.44 and it slipped by eight-paisa for selling at Rs85.46 due to rising demand for the US currency.
OVERSEAS OUTLOOK FOR DOLLAR: In the first Asia trade, the dollar rebounded from near-record lows against the yen, boosted by hedge fund buying as the Bank of Japan's huge infusion into money markets helped ease nervousness triggered by the massive earthquake and tsunami in north-east Japan.
The plunge in the Nikkei share average also prompted a sell-off in currencies that thrive when there is increased risk appetite, such as the Australian and New Zealand dollars.
The yen had advanced sharply on Friday on talk of repatriation flows, as the disaster unfolded and was seen likely to extend gains especially if Japanese insurers try to raise funds by selling overseas holdings.
On Monday, the country was battling to prevent a nuclear catastrophe and to care for millions of people without power and water.
The greenback tumbled as low as 80.60, yen on electronic trading platform EBS, 1 yen away from a historic trough of 79.75, yen hit in 1995. But news of the BOJ's offer to inject a record $183 billion into the money market helped the dollar pull away from the day's low. Interbank buy/sell rates for the taka against the dollar on Monday. 71.72/71.79 (previous 71.71/71.72)
Call Money Rates: 11.00-12.00 percent (previous 8.00-12.00 percent.
Indian rupee was at Rs 45.24 against the dollar, Malaysian ringgit was available at 3.0405 in terms of the greenback and Chinese yuan was trade at 6.5697 versus the dollar. In the second Asian trade, the yen surged after Japan's prime minister said radiation levels near a quake-stricken nuclear plant had become high and the risk of further nuclear leakage was rising, prompting investors to dump risky assets.
Trading was choppy, and the yen later trimmed some of its gains after a 100-pip spike in the dollar to above 82.00 yen spurred vague talk of yen-selling intervention by Japanese authorities. But the dollar later sagged and traders said they were unsure if intervention occurred, adding that the Bank of Japan may instead have checked currency rates, a tactic sometimes used before actual intervention to scare traders against chasing the yen higher.
Indian rupee was available at Rs 45.06 in terms of the dollars, Malaysian ringgit was trading at 3.0410 versus the greenback and Chinese yuan was trading at 6.5682 in relation to the dollar.
Interbank buy/sell rates for the taka against the dollar on Tuesday. 71.83/71.89 (previous 71.72/71.79) Call Money Rates: 11.00-12.00 percent (previous 8.00-12.00 percent). In the third Asian trade, the yen edged lower, taking its cues from a short-covering bounce in Tokyo shares, but may see more gains near-term as jitters about Japan's nuclear crisis keep investors on edge and risk appetites subdued.
Japan's Nikkei share average climbed 5.7 percent, regaining some ground after plunging 10.6 percent a day earlier following reports a quake-crippled nuclear power plant had sent radiation wafting toward Tokyo.
Wednesday's bounce in Tokyo shares gave some respite to the Australian dollar, which had slid 3 percent against the yen on Tuesday. Higher-yielding currencies like the Aussie are seen as proxies for global growth and sold in times of stress. The dollar also rose against the yen, edging up 0.1 percent to around 80.84 yen. The dollar had fallen to around 80.60 yen on Tuesday, less than a yen away from the 1995 record low of 79.75 yen.
Indian rupee was trading at Rs 45.24 versus the dollar, Malaysian ringgit was available at 3.0580 in relation to the greenback and Chinese yuan was at 6.5727 for a dollar.
Interbank buy/sell rates for the taka against the dollar on Wednesday. 71.94/71.98 (previous 71.83/71.89). Call Money Rates: 11.00-12.00 percent (previous 8.00-12.00 percent. In the fourth Asian trade, the yen soared to a record high of 76.25 against the dollar, reaching levels that may force more market players to unwind positions and test the resolve of Japanese authorities threatening intervention to stem currency strength.

A break through the previous record of 79.75 triggered a cascade of stop-loss and algorithmic selling of the dollar, sending the yen surging in illiquid trade in the hours between the US and Asian trading days.
Dollar/yen clawed back to near 77.50 on buying by Japanese importers and some retail margin traders, but the huge earlier drop to the record was seen prompting other investors to shed long positions in higher-yielding currencies, traders said. Indian rupee was trading at Rs 45.11 versus the dollar, Malaysian ringgit was available at 3.0620 in relation to the greenback and Chinese yuan at 6.5705 in terms of the US currency.
In the final Asian trade, the yen tumbled more than 3 percent after Group of Seven finance ministers agreed to immediately and jointly intervene against the Japanese currency's surge to a record peak, with Bank of Japan buying pushing the dollar above 81 yen.
Japanese Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda said Japan agreed with central banks of the United States, Britain and Canada as well as the European Central Bank to jointly intervene in the currency market. Markets were caught off guard by the first joint action in over a decade, expecting Japan to act alone.
Indian rupee was trading at Rs 45.18 versus the dollar, Malaysian ringgit was available at 3.0440 and Chinese yuan was at 6.5707 in terms of the greenback.
At the weekend, the Group of Seven (G-7) launched its first co-ordinated currency market intervention since 2000 and pledged to do more if needed to rein in a soaring yen, but investors betting on a sustained decline in the Japanese currency could be disappointed.
Both the Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada said they had sold yen, bolstering European and Japanese efforts to restrain the yen and calm markets after Japan's devastating earthquake, tsunami and unfolding nuclear crisis.
The dollar rose nearly 4 percent to 82.00 yen on trading platform EBS in European trade, but hedge funds and other speculative accounts tested official resolve by buying into the yen sell-off. The dollar last traded just below 81 yen, though still up 2.7 percent on the day.
Investors betting on a sustained decline in the Japanese currency could be disappointed after the Group of Seven on Friday launched its first co-ordinated currency market intervention since 2000 and pledged to do more if needed to rein in a soaring yen. Both the Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada said they had sold yen, bolstering European and Japanese efforts to weaken the currency and calm markets after Japan's devastating earthquake, tsunami and unfolding nuclear crisis.
OPEN MARKET RATES: On March 14, the rupee followed the same trend, dropping by 20-paisa against the dollar for buying and selling at Rs85.50 and Rs85.65. The rupee continued its weakness versus the euro, shedding 64-paisa for buying and selling at Rs 118.81 and Rs 119.31.
On March 15, the rupee gained 15-paisa versus the dollar for buying at Rs85.35 and it also rose by 10-paisa for selling at Rs85.55. The rupee also managed to go up in relation to the euro, rising 79 paisa for buying and selling at Rs 118.02 and Rs 118.52. On March 16, the rupee slipped by five-paisa in relation to the dollar for buying and selling at Rs85.40 and Rs85.60.
The rupee also lost 81-paisa in terms of the euro, coming down by 81-paisa for buying and selling at Rs 118.83 and Rs 119.33. On March 17, the rupee held it overnight level versus the dollar for buying at Rs85.40, while it gained five-paisa for selling and Rs85.55. The rupee shed 34-paisa in terms of the euro, losing by 34-paisa for buying and selling at Rs 119.17 and Rs 119.67.
On March 18, the rupee held it overnight levels versus the dollar for buying at Rs85.40 and selling at Rs85.55. While, the rupee fell sharply in terms of the euro, shedding 82-paisa for buying and selling at Rs 119.99 and Rs 120.49.
On March 19, the rupee managed to hold its overnight levels against the dollar for the second day for buying and selling at Rs85.40 and Rs85.55. While, the rupee continued its fall in terms of the euro, losing 41-paisa for buying and selling at Rs 120.40 and Rs 120.90.