PKR weakens by 11 paisa against greenback

April 05, 2021 (MLN): Pakistani rupee (PKR) depreciated by 11 paisa against US Dollar (USD) in today's interbank session as the currency closed the day's trade at PKR 153.66 per USD, against last session's closing of PKR 153.55 per USD.

The rupee traded within a very narrow range of 22 paisa per USD showing an intraday high bid of 153.73 and an intraday Low offer of 153.55.

In the Open Market, the dollar was quoted at 153.20/154.20. During the month of March, PKR made a lot of headlines but it witnessed a decline in its value as April started. Commenting on PKR depreciation, Asad Rizvi, former Treasury Head-Chase Manhattan Bank took to Twitter handle and said, ‘A large Pakistani Bank is present in the market, which is supporting Dollars. Buying could be due to commercial demand or essential payment. However, the size of oil is another factor that was costing $ 18,000 earlier has surged to approximately $ 28.000. This is worrisome.’

During FY21, the local unit has so far strengthened by Rs 14.39 or 9.37% against the greenback while in CY21, the appreciation has been Rs 6.17 or 4.02%. MTD (month to date) position showed a decrease of 0.59%, as per data compiled by Mettis Global.

Meanwhile, the currency lost 52 paisa to the Pound Sterling as the day's closing quote stood at PKR 213.02 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 212.51 per GBP.

On the other hand, PKR's value strengthened by 34 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 180.53 at the interbank today.

On another note, within the money market, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) conducted an Open Market Operation in which it injected Rs.87 billion for 4 days at 7.04 percent.

The overnight repo rate towards close of the session was 7.10/7.20 percent, whereas the 1-week rate was 7.05/7.10 percent.

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