Currency: Rupee firms, overnight rates higher

The rupee closed at 84.43/48 to the dollar amid a lack of import payments.

KARACHI: The rupee closed at 84.43/48 to the dollar, compared with Tuesday’s close of 84.52/62, amid a lack of import payments, but dealers expect the local unit to stay range-bound despite rising oil prices.

The rupee touched an 11-month high last week because of a record inflow of remittances in March, according to analysts and officials. In the money market, overnight rates closed higher at 13.90 per cent, compared with the previous day’s close of 13 per cent.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 21^st, 2011.