PKR snaps uptrend, sheds 14 paisa against USD

November 23, 2023 (MLN): The Pakistani rupee (PKR) concluded its upward momentum by depreciating 14 paisa against the US dollar in Thursday's interbank session to settle at PKR 285.27, compared to the previous day's closing of PKR 285.13 per USD.

The local unit saw an intraday high (bid) of 285.05 and a low (ask) of 285.4.

In the open market, the local unit gained 50 paisa  as exchange companies quoted the dollar at 283.5 for buying and 286.5 for selling, compared to the previous closing of 284 for buying and 287 for selling

To note, this decline follows four consecutive sessions of gains against the USD for the local unit.

This upswing was due to the successful staff-level agreement (SLA) between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Pakistani authorities during the first review under the Stand-By Arrangement (SBA).

Pending approval by the IMF's Executive Board, the agreement will grant Pakistan access to SDR 528 million, around $700m.

In the statement issued by the IMF on the approval, the Fund said that strengthening macroeconomic sustainability and laying the conditions for balanced growth are key priorities under the SBA.

The authorities’ policy priorities include returning to a market-determined exchange rate and rebuilding FX reserves.

While inflows following increased regulatory and law enforcement helped normalize import and FX payments and rebuild reserves, the authorities recognize that the rupee must remain market-determined to alleviate external pressures and rebuild reserves sustainably.

To support this, they plan to strengthen the transparency and efficiency of the FX market and refrain from administrative actions to influence the rupee.

Despite this positivity, the PKR remained under pressure throughout today's trading session.

To recall, the pressure resulting from the gap between the demand and supply of dollars prevailed over the market for days and the PKR suffered losses for four consecutive weeks.

However, as per Bloomberg's latest report, the local unit's outlook will improve following the International Monetary Fund’s preliminary approval for the release of the next loan tranche under the current $3bn loan program.

In comparison to major currencies, PKR gained 10.38 paisa against the Euro, closing at 311.22 compared to the previous value of 311.33.

The British Pound became cheaper by 55.19 paisa, closing at 356.77 compared to 357.32 from a day ago.

Swiss franc saw losses of 2.41 paisa, closing at 322.81 compared to 322.83 from the previous session.

Against the Japanese Yen, PKR gained 0.36 paisa, closing at 1.912 versus 1.915 a day ago.

The Chinese Yuan gained 5.2 paisa, closing at 39.9581 against 39.9061 from the previous session.

The Saudi Riyal closed at 76.06 with a gain of 3.74 paisa from its value of 76.02 a day ago.

The U.A.E Dirham increased in value by 4.03 paisa from 77.634 a day ago to 77.674.

During the current financial year, PKR has appreciated against the Dollar by 0.73 rupees or 0.25%. While the current calendar year has seen PKR depreciate by 58.83 rupees or 20.62%.

In the Money Market, the benchmark 6-month Karachi Interbank Bid and Offer rates were unchanged at 21.15% and 21.4%.

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