Rupee Continues to Crumble With Another Big Loss Against the USD

The Pakistani Rupee (PKR) resumed its losing streak against the US Dollar (USD) in the interbank currency market today. It deteriorated by 54 paisas over yesterday’s exchange rate, and closed at Rs. 162.43 to the USD today (30 July) as compared to Rs. 161.88 on Thursday (29 July).

On a weekly basis, the PKR lost 0.06 percent to the greenback; while on a monthly basis, this deterioration was steeper at 3.10 percent. Even on an annual comparison, the local unit lost 1.62 percent value to the USD, according to the financial analytics platform Capital Stake.

This week’s journey for the PKR included a substantial improvement of Rs. 1.09 on Monday, deterioration of 10 paisas on Tuesday, and an even steeper deterioration of 57 paisas on Wednesday. On Thursday, the PKR managed to improve by only one paisa before crumbling by over half a rupee today.

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) released the reserves data yesterday, which also showed a decline for the previous week. This, coupled with higher imports, is pressuring the PKR in the interbank currency market.

Experts told ProPakistani that this continued deterioration of the Rupee will put an extra burden on the external debt to the tune of Rs, 1,100 billion. The PKR is trading at a much lower exchange rate than the official figures in the open market, and today’s open market exchange neared Rs. 163.5 to the USD.

The PKR posted blanket losses against other major currencies as well. It lost Rs. 1.10 against the Euro, Rs. 1.01 against the Pound Sterling (GBP), 47 paisas against the Australian Dollar (AUD), and 79 paisas against the Canadian Dollar (CAD).

It also deteriorated by over 14 paisas each against the UAE Dirham (UAE) and the Saudi Riyal (SAR) today.

 

Source: Pro Pakistani