PKR gains 9 paisa against greenback

October 07, 2021 (MLN): After hitting a record low in the previous sessions, the Pakistani rupee (PKR) registered a gain of 9 paisa against the US dollar in today's interbank session as the currency closed the trade at PKR 170.87.

In yesterday’s session, the domestic unit had closed at PKR 170.96 per USD.

The historic depreciation of the Pakistani Rupee (PKR) has forced the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to take significant measures to curb the undesirable outflow of cash foreign currency as per which transactions equivalent to US$500/- and above and outward remittances need biometric verification.

Taking to his official Twitter handle, Asad Rizvi, the Former Treasury Head at Chase Manhattan said, “SBP after imposing restrictions on CAR financing & then 100% cash on 114 items have amended Exchange Companies Rules to have a better grip on the outflow of currencies that may not be enough.”

“It is time to take fiscal measures before all monetary tools get exhausted,” he added.

The rupee traded within a range of 70 paisa per USD showing an intraday high bid of 171.20 and an intraday Low offer of 170.50.

Within the Open Market, PKR was traded at 170/171.50 per USD.

As per the data compiled by Mettis Global, the local unit has depreciated by 7.80% or PKR 13.32 in the fiscal year-to-date against the USD. Similarly, the rupee has weakened by 6.46% or PKR 11.03 in CY21, with the month-to-date (MTD) position showing a decline of 0.12%.

Alternatively, the currency lost 28 paisa to the Pound Sterling as the day's closing quote stood at PKR 232.21 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 231.93 per GBP.

Similarly, PKR's value weakened by 1 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 197.69 at the interbank today.

On another note, within the money market, the overnight repo rate towards the close of the session was 7.35/7.45 percent, whereas the 1-week rate was 7.35/7.40 percent.

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