KARACHI: Pakistani rupee on Monday recorded a loss against the US dollar for the 19th consecutive session, depreciating 0.08 percent in the interbank.
As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee declined by Rs0.19 to close at 228.34. During the ongoing fiscal year, the rupee has depreciated 10.33% against the greenback.
During the previous week, the rupee depreciated in all five sessions against the US dollar, falling 0.44% to settle at 228.15 in the inter-bank market.
Interbank closing #ExchangeRate for todayhttps://t.co/UORNcYzYwH pic.twitter.com/RqZzoFhLV8
— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) January 16, 2023
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.
Jameel Ahmad, the governor of SBP, gave the business community an assurance that the issue of dollar limitations will be resolved shortly after manufacturers predicted bleak prospects for industrial production if raw material imports were to continue to be restricted.
