KARACHI: The rupee registered a marginal appreciation of 0.13% during the previous week, which consisted of four trading sessions, to close at 286.45 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market.
While the week-on-week change was marginal, the rupee endured a fall close to the 289 level before strengthening to close with back-to-back gains.
The reversal came after the central bank’s decision to allow Exchange Companies (ECs) to import US dollars in cash against the value of their export consignments of permissible foreign currencies within five working days, through reputed cargo or security companies.
Additionally, the rupee also narrowed its gap with rates in the open market with US dollar hovering between 288 and 291 at close on Thursday.
The rupee’s future direction will most likely depend on how open Pakistan’s imports become as backlog of shipments starts to get cleared.
Foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan also fell a substantial $541 million on a weekly basis, clocking in at nearly $8.19 billion as of July 21, which will play on the minds of the currency market as further inflows have yet to materialise.
Open-market rates
In the open market, the PKR remained unchanged for both buying and selling against USD, closing at 288.00 and 291.00, respectively.
Against Euro, the PKR gained 3.00 rupees for both buying and selling, closing at 317.00 and 320.00, respectively.
Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 90 paisa for buying and 1.00 rupee for selling, closing at 80.20 and 81.00, respectively.
Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 30 paisa for buying and 20 paisa for selling, closing at 77.00 and 77.70, 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. 286.35
Offer Close Rs. 286.55
Bid Open Rs. 286.70
Offer Open Rs. 286.90
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Weekly open-market rates for dollar
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Bid Close Rs. 288.00
Offer Close Rs. 291.00
Bid Open Rs. 288.00
Offer Open Rs. 291.00
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Copyright Business Recorder, 2023