The Pakistani rupee gained further ground 19th day in a row against the US Dollar today after opening trade at 289 in the interbank market.
At 11:30 PM, it was bullish, rising as high as 283 after gaining ~Rs. 6 against the greenback.
Later, the interbank rate eased to the 286 level between 1:30 PM and 2:30 PM before anchoring trends at 285 for the remainder of the day.
In the last 16 sessions, the PKR has gained Rs. 21.33 against the greenback.
Open market rates across multiple currency counters stood in the 282-286 range today. Since September 4, the open market rate has recovered massively by roughly Rs. 52 against the greenback.
At close, the PKR appreciated by 0.36 percent to close at 285.72 after gaining Rs. 1.04 against the dollar today.
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The rupee continued its good run 19th day in a row today. “Speculation remains a rarity these days despite market forces being ever so volatile these past few weeks. The growth is good and exporters are coming in and exchanging dollars, but we see the peak nearby. The PKR joyride has an ending date and it isn’t far off,” one of them said.
The gap between interbank and open market rates massively shrunk by roughly Rs. 52 last month. The rates have gone down to as low as 282 and have since continued brief spikes to 286 today.
Pertinently, the rupee is down nearly Rs. 66 since January 2023. Since April 2022, it is down over Rs. 113 against the greenback. As per exchange rate movements witnessed today, the PKR has gained over Rs. 1 against the dollar.
In a key development, the World Bank has projected Pakistan’s GDP growth rate at 1.7 percent during the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), a downward revision from its earlier estimate of 2 percent during the period.
The Bank, in its latest report ‘Pakistan Development Update: Restoring Fiscal Sustainability’ released today, said that without a sharp fiscal adjustment and decisive implementation of broad-based reforms, Pakistan’s economy will remain vulnerable to domestic and external shocks.
Predicated on the robust implementation of the IMF Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), new external financing, and continued fiscal restraint, real GDP growth is projected to recover to 1.7 percent in FY24 and 2.4 percent in FY25.
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The PKR was green against all of the other major currencies in the interbank market today. It gained 28 paisas against the Saudi Riyal (SAR), 28 paisas against the UAE Dirham (AED), Rs. 2.48 against the Canadian Dollar (CAD), and Rs. 4.08 against the British Pound (GBP).
Source: Pro Pakistani