February 27, 2023 (MLN): Continuing its gaining momentum, the Pakistani rupee (PKR) has appreciated by 7 paisa against the US dollar in the first trading session of the week in the interbank market as the currency settled the day's trade at PKR 259.92 per USD compared to previous session's closing of PKR 259.99 per USD.
Throughout the session, the local unit traded in a band of 60 paisa, showing an intraday high bid of 260.10 and low offer of 259.75 while in the open market, PKR was traded at 263/266 per USD.
Despite the political upheaval and economic slowdown, the local unit is keep gaining ground against the greenback in the hope of an IMF bailout package.
It is pertinent to note that the rupee experienced a significant depreciation against it, reaching an all-time low of Rs276.58 on February 03, 2023.
However, over the course of the following weeks, the rupee demonstrated a gradual recovery, reaching a value of 259.92 against the US dollar today, representing an increase of over 16 rupees.
Notably, this recovery has also occurred in the context of ongoing import restrictions that were having a significant impact on the economy.
On the upside, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) finally received $700 million from China on Friday.
This loan from China is part of a series of financial assistance packages that the country has received from its close ally in recent years. With this loan, Pakistan will be able to boost its reserves and work towards economic stability in the long run.
At present, the foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank stood at $3.25 billion, up by $65.6 million or 2.05% WoW during the week ended on February 17, 2023, marking the second consecutive increase on weekly basis, according to the data released by the central bank on Thursday.
The central bank is also expected to raise interest rates in an off-cycle review this week, as the country seeks to repair its finances and secure a loan from the fund.
In FYTD, PKR lost 55.07 rupees or 21.19%, while it plummeted by 33.49 rupees or 12.89% against the USD in CYTD. On the other hand, within the last seven sessions, the local unit moved up by 0.75%, as per data compiled by Mettis Global.
Meanwhile, the currency gained 1.8 rupees against the Pound Sterling as the day's closing quote stood at PKR 310.79 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 312.56 per GBP.
Similarly, PKR's value strengthened by 97 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 274.3 at the interbank today.
On another note, within the money market, the central bank conducted an Open Market Operation (OMO) and Shariah-compliant Mudarabah OMO today, in which it cumulatively injected a total of Rs125.75 billion into the market, from which Rs107.75bn was injected into the market for 4 days at 17.08%.
The overnight repo rate towards the close of the session was 17.25%/17.5%, whereas the 1-week rate was 17.35%/17.45%.
Copyright Mettis Link News
Posted on: 2023-02-27T17:36:50+05:00
