brecorder.com
KARACHI: Pakistan’s rupee weakened further against the US dollar on Friday, as the currency depreciated 0.33% to close above the 175 level in the inter-bank market.
As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the PKR closed at 175.24 against the USD after a day-on-day depreciation of Rs0.57 or 0.33%. The fall comes after the rupee depreciated 0.52% or Rs0.91 against the dollar on Thursday, after three days of successive gain.
Last week on Friday, the PKR had depreciated to its lowest level of 175.73 against the USD in the inter-bank market.
“Supply and demand factors are playing in the minds of market participants, who are keenly awaiting the central bank’s monetary policy announcement,” Saad Khan, Head of Equities at IGI Securities told Business Recorder, ahead of Friday's key interest-rate announcement.
The SBP hiked the rate by 150 basis points.
The Monetary Policy Committee meeting, which was originally scheduled for November 26, was preponed "in light of recent unforeseen developments that have affected the outlook for inflation and the balance of payments, and to help reduce the uncertainty about monetary settings prevailing in the market", said the SBP.
Earlier, the central bank also took strict notice of the volatile exchange rate and warned banks to refrain from speculations and undue practices in the currency market or face stern action.
Sources told Business Recorder that SBP conducted a high-level meeting of heads of commercial banks on Thursday at the SBP head office to review the ongoing developments in the currency market. The meeting was chaired by SBP Governor Dr Reza Baqir.
During the meeting, the SBP warned banks to refrain from exchange rate speculations and ensure fair dollar transactions in the inter-bank market.
Open-market movement
In the open market, the PKR lost one rupee for both buying and selling against USD, closing at 176 and 177, respectively.
Against Euro, the PKR gained 1.50 rupees for both buying and selling, closing at 197 and 198.50, respectively.
Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 10 paisas for both buying and selling, closing at 49.30 and 49.80, respectively.
Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 10 paisas for both buying and selling as well, closing at 46.40 and 46.70, respectively.
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Open Bid Rs 176.00
Open Offer Rs 177.00
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Interbank Closing Rates: Interbank Closing Rates For Dollar on Friday.
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Open Bid Rs 175.10
Open Offer Rs 175.20
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RUPEE IN LAHORE: The Pak rupee depreciated its worth versus major currencies including the greenback and the British pound in the local currency market on Friday.
According to the local currency dealers, the short supply phenomenon of the greenback continued to prevail throughout the trading session which helped its appreciation for buying and selling at Rs 176.00 and Rs 177.00 against the overnight closing trend of Rs 175.50 and Rs 176.50, respectively.
Versus the pound sterling, the local currency maintained its downtrend for the second consecutive day. Consequently, the pound’s buying and selling rates further rose from Thursday’s closing of Rs 233.50 and Rs 235.50 to Rs 234.10 and Rs 236.00, respectively, they added.
RUPEE IN ISLAMABAD AND RAWALPINDI: The dollar witnessed a major increase against the Pak rupee at the open currency markets of Islamabad and Rawalpindi here on Friday.
The dollar opened at Rs 177(buying) and Rs 177.10(selling) against the last rate of Rs 175.20(buying) and Rs 175.30(selling).
It closed at Rs 177(buying) and Rs 177.10(selling).
The buying and selling rates of one tola of gold was Rs 121(buying) and Rs 121,500(selling).
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
