PKR loses ground by 16 paisa against greenback

September 22, 2021 (MLN): Pakistani rupee (PKR) lost its value by 16 paisa against US Dollar in today's interbank session, offsetting yesterday’s gain of 21 paisa as the currency closed the day's trade at PKR 168.68.

On Tuesday, the domestic unit had closed at PKR 168.52 per USD.

In his early morning Tweet, Asad Rizvi, the former Treasury Head at Chase Manhattan said, “After Policy Rate Hike, today’s T-bills auction will be keenly watched. Cut off could be 45bp+ higher for Rs 800bn target as MPS hinted further hike.”

“MOF nerves will be tested in next T-bills 4-auctions. The burden of Rate Hike & PKR Depreciation to kitty could exceed Rs 200bn,” he added.

The rupee traded within a very narrow range of 53 paisa per USD showing an intraday high bid of 168.78 and an intraday Low offer of 168.25.

Within the Open Market, PKR was traded at 169/170 per USD.

According to the data gathered by Mettis Global, the local unit has depreciated by 6.60% or PKR 11.13 in the fiscal year-to-date against the USD. Similarly, the rupee has weakened by 5.24% or PKR 8.84 in CY21, with the month-to-date (MTD) position showing a decline of 1.36%.

Alternatively, the currency gained 62 paisa against the Pound Sterling as the day's closing quote stood at PKR 230.07 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 230.69 per GBP.

On the other hand, PKR's value weakened by 16 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 197.95 at the interbank today.

On another note, within the money market, the overnight repo rate towards close of the session was 7.15/7.25 percent, whereas the 1 week rate was 7.25/7.35 percent.

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