The Pakistani rupee (PKR) has hit a new all-time low against the US dollar as the currency closed the trade at PKR 177.43 after losing 64 paisa.
On Tuesday, the local unit lost 31 paisa as it settled the trade at PKR 176.79 per USD.
The local unit endured a beating owing to the widening trade deficit and diminishing foreign reserves which have amplified the demand for the dollar in the interbank market.
The rupee witnessed a volatile trading session with quotes being recorded in a range of 90 paisa per USD showing an intraday high bid of 177.60 and an intraday Low offer of 176.70.
According to the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP), PKR depreciated by 60 paisa for buying and 70 paisa for selling over the day closed at 178.3 and 179.5 respectively in the open market.
The local currency has devalued by 11.21% or PKR 19.88 in the fiscal year-to-date against the USD. Along similar lines, the rupee has weakened by 9.92% or PKR 17.59 in CY21, with the month-to-date (MTD) position as it depreciated by 0.96%.
It must be noted that the currency lost 6 paisa to the Pound Sterling as the day’s closing quote stood at PKR 234.92 per GBP, while the previous session closed at PKR 234.87 per GBP.
The PKR was further devalued by 66 paisa against EUR which closed at PKR 200.24 at the interbank during the session on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, within the money market, the central bank conducted an Open Market Operation in which it injected Rs.259.45 billion for 2 days at 9.15 percent.
The overnight repo rate towards the close of the session was 9.25/9.50 percent, whereas the 1-week rate was 9.15/9.25 percent.
