KARACHI: Rupee marginally weakened during the previous week as it declined Re0.06 or 0.02% against the US dollar.
The local unit closed at 277.70, against 277.64 it had closed the week earlier against the greenback, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
In a key development during the previous week, Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) enhanced the scope of their partnership to $2.8 billion with another seven Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) added to the previous 27 MoUs between the two countries.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s headline inflation clocked in at 7.2% on a year-on-year basis in October 2024, slightly higher than the reading in September 2024 when it stood at 6.9%, showed Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) data during the previous week.
Pakistan’s trade deficit significantly decreased by 31% to $1.5 billion in October 2024 as compared to the same month of the previous year. The country’s trade balance, gap between exports and imports, was recorded at a deficit of $2.17 billion in October 2023, PBS reported.
Foreign exchange reserves held by the SBP increased by $116 million on a weekly basis, clocking in at $11.16 billion as of October 25. Total liquid foreign reserves held by the country stood at $16.05 billion. Net foreign reserves held by commercial banks stood at $4.89 billion.
Open-market rates
In the open market, the PKR lost 5 paise for buying and 1 paise for selling against USD, closing at 276.80 and 278.63, respectively.
Against Euro, the PKR lost 1.65 rupee for buying and 1.73 rupee for selling, closing at 299.74 and 302.52, respectively.
Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 4 paise for buying and 5 paise for selling, closing at 75.26 and 75.96, respectively. Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 6 paise for both buying and selling, closing at 73.52 and 74.16, 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. 277.70
Offer Close Rs. 277.90
Bid Open Rs. 277.64
Offer Open Rs. 277.84
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Weekly open-market rates for dollar
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Bid Close Rs. 276.80
Offer Close Rs. 278.63
Bid Open Rs. 276.75
Offer Open Rs. 278.62
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Copyright Business Recorder, 2024