Rupee weakens against dollar

SBP maintains that the slide in the rupee’s value is due to supply and demand dynamics of foreign exchange

KARACHI: The rupee weakened against the dollar at Rs124/124.2 in the inter-bank market on Tuesday compared with Monday’s close of Rs123.9/124.1. Following reports that China had agreed to immediately lend $2 billion to Pakistan, the rupee had appreciated against the US dollar. Cumulatively, it has recovered 3.36% from Rs128.5 in the past few days. Prior to this, it had lost 22% of value since December 2017 after the central bank reportedly abstained from intervening in response to the pressure due to a widening current account deficit. The State Bank of Pakistan has maintained that the slide in the rupee’s value is due to supply and demand dynamics of foreign exchange in the inter-bank market. While it has promised prompt intervention in case of speculative or momentary pressures, the central bank will sit on the fence and let “market-driven adjustment in the exchange rate to continue to contain the imbalance in the external account and sustain a higher growth trajectory”, according to a press statement.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 8^th, 2018.

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