PKR loses ground against US dollar for 18th successive session

KARACHI: Pakistani rupee on Friday registered a marginal depreciation against the US dollar for the 18th successive session in the interbank.

As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee declined by Rs0.01 to close at 228.15. During the ongoing fiscal year, the rupee has depreciated 10.25 percent against the greenback.

Interbank closing #ExchangeRate for todayhttps://t.co/y29qcmPMAO pic.twitter.com/Nl2VMaQkDF

— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) January 13, 2023

On Thursday, the rupee had registered a loss for the 17th successive session against the US dollar to settle at 228.14 after a decrease of Rs0.21 or 0.09%.

In a key development, the State Bank of Pakistan’s foreign reserves fell by $1.23 billion to an alarming level of $4.34 billion, data released on Thursday showed. This is the lowest level of SBP’s reserves since February 2014.

Although the country is facing a serious crisis of foreign exchange reserves, it is meeting international financial obligations to avoid default.

Meanwhile, policymakers are scrambling to secure inflows of dollars with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to the UAE part of the efforts. The UAE on Thursday, agreed to lend $1 billion to Pakistan and roll over an existing $2 billion loan, offering some respite to a nation still reeling from devastating floods.