The Pakistani rupee edged up during early trade in the interbank by gaining 22 paisas in its value against the US dollar on Friday. As per the market reports, the rupee moved up slightly, slumping American currency by 22 paisas in the interbank. The US dollar was being traded at Rs287.15. Yesterday, the local unit was eased by 19 paisas against the US dollar in the interbank session. According to Mettis Global, during the current financial year, Pakistani rupee has depreciated against the US dollar by Rs82.52 or 28.72%. While the current calendar year has seen PKR depreciate by Rs60.94 or 21.2%.

Pakistan is facing serious foreign exchange crunch. However, its reserves saw a modest increase of more than $100 million for the week ending June 9, 2023, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). The country’s total foreign exchange reserves rose to $9.378 billion compared to $9.335 billion the previous week, which was June 2, 2023. A breakdown showed that foreign reserves held by the SBP stood at $4.018 billion, while the reserves held by commercial banks stood at $5.4 billion. However, the current reserves are barely enough to cover one month’s import bill.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP