The Pakistani rupee was appreciated by 45 paisas against the US dollar in the interbank trading on Monday. According to money dealers, the market that resumed its trading after a break of four days today reposed confidence in the local unit as the US dollar slumped by 45 paisas in the interbank and was trading hand at Rs286. On Thursday, the Pakistani rupee edged up by 59 paisas and ended the day at Rs286.45. Today’s appreciation of the PKR could be attributed to the market’s positive response to the high-profile visit of Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, and a recent $2.4 billion rollover from China which has strengthened the country’s foreign exchange reserves. Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Ishaq Dar confirmed on Thursday that the Export-Import (Exim) Bank of China rolled over $2.4 billion in loan repayments by Pakistan due in the next two years.

 Moreover, a generous inflow of $600 million is also expected from a consortium of two major Chinese banks in the coming days. Moreover, in the current month, Pakistan received a total of $4.2 billion in financial aid. This assistance included $2 billion from Saudi Arabia, $1 billion from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and $1.2 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF’s approval of $3 billion for Pakistan was provided as part of a Standby Arrangement (SBA) to support the nation’s economic stability. The total liquid foreign reserves of Pakistan stood at US$13,534.1 million while reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan climbed to $8,186.1 million as of July 21, 2023, according to a statement issued by the State Bank on Friday. During his speech in Senate on Sunday, Finance Minister Dar vowed that his economic team would manage to raise the foreign exchange reserves from $14 billion to $15 billion within the next seven weeks.

 
Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)