The Pakistani Rupee continued its downward slide, losing another 0.52% to close at 162.32 against the US Dollar in the inter-bank market on Friday, said the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

The PKR even hit 162.50 during intra-day trading before settling at 162.32, its lowest value since October 2020. On Monday, the Pakistani rupee lost close to 1% to decline to its lowest value in nine months. It ended at Rs161.48 on Monday.

The rupee has been under pressure since May amid a widening current account deficit and a higher import bill that ballooned $53.8 billion in FY21.

Rupee declines to nine-month low as import bill mounts

Earlier, Forex Association of Pakistan President Malik Bostan said that the rising import bill and increasing current account deficit have put pressure on the rupee. Exporters have not yet converted their proceeds into rupees, which has added to the pressure on forex markets, added Bostan.

Pakistan's current account figures, which could have been in surplus, ended with a deficit of $1.8 billion in FY21 due to the import bill.

The year also recorded the highest inflows from remittances and exports in Pakistan’s history, at $29.3 billion and $25.6 billion, respectively.

“Jun’21 CAD is the largest since Jul’18 with the primary reason being the steep increase in import bill (+29.1%MoM)," said AKD Securities in its latest report. "We attribute this to US$130mn disbursed on vaccine procurement and certain year-end purchases (Other imports: US$980mn in Jun’21 vs. avg. US$381mn during the rest of the year), and general hike in prices of global commodities."