The Pakistani rupee delivered another knock-out punch to the US dollar in the early interbank trading on Thursday as the greenback kept reeling in face of the emboldened local currency following Finance Minister Ishaq Dar’s statement that the government would soon be able to put the American currency “in its right place. As the forex dealers took position in the interbank market, the Pakistani rupee straight away soared by Rs2.19 and was currently being traded at Rs221.75. The US dollar on Wednesday managed to end the day at Rs223.94. The Pakistani rupee had accumulated Rs17.90 appreciation in its value during the last nine business days. The surge in rupee’s value has lessened the burden of foreign debt to the tune of Rs2,200 billion.

Experts opined that the recent encouraging trade balance data, hopes from multilateral institutions of additional inflows were the additional factors for the Pakistani rupee to reclaim its lost value. The trade deficit fell 31 percent year-on-year to $2.88 billion in September, according to data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics. Exports slightly fell 1 percent to $2.39 billion in September from $2.41 billion a year earlier. Imports declined 20 percent year on year to $5.27 billion. The deficit in the first quarter (July-September) of FY2023 narrowed 21.4 percent to $9.2 billion against $11.72 billion in the same three months of the last year. The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) governor had informed the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Finance the other day that action would be taken against banks and forex exchange companies involved in creating volatility in the exchange rate upon the finalisation of the inquiry.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan-INP