During the week, the Pakistani rupee (PKR) gained 49 paisa against the US dollar and closed at PKR 175.24 compared to the previous week’s closing at PKR 175.73 per USD.
Earlier this week, PKR trimmed some of its losses owing to a positive statement made by Shaukat Tarin, Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue which indicated that the uncertainty related to the IMF loan facility is going to end soon. He said, “speculators will soon bear the losses.”
Asad Rizvi, the Former Treasury Head at Chase Manhattan criticized the statement saying that it would create serious problems for Pakistan on the front Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
PKR continued facing pressure during the last trading session of the week as the domestic currency closed the week trading at PKR 175.24 per USD, losing 57 paisa, against the closing of PKR 174.67 in the previous trading session.
The impact of the adviser’s statement, however, faded as the local unit joined back its previous course driven by the rising inflation in the global market, soaring demand for the dollar, and uncertainty related to the IMF.
Market participants are still waiting for the talks with IMF regarding the resumption of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) to conclude.
The rupee witnessed a volatile trading session on Friday with quotes being recorded in a range of 2 rupees per USD reflecting an intraday high bid of 175.60 and an intraday Low offer of 173.60.
Within the Open Market, PKR was traded at 174.50/176.50 per USD.
The currency has devalued by 10.10% or PKR 17.69 in the fiscal year-to-date against the USD. The rupee has weakened by 8.79% or PKR 15.40 in CY21, with the month-to-date (MTD) position recording a decline of 1.76%.
The domestic currency gained 11 paisa against the Pound Sterling as the day’s closing quote stood at PKR 235.59 per GBP, compared to the previous session’s closing at PKR 235.7 per GBP.
In terms of the EUR, PKR’s value weakened by 41 paisa against it closing at PKR 198.33 at the interbank on Friday.
Within the money market, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) conducted an Open Market Operation in which it injected Rs.1.84 trillion for 3 days at 7.62 percent.
The overnight repo rate towards the end of the session was 7.65/7.80 percent, whereas the 1-week rate was 7.90/8.10 percent.
