Rupee Closes Below 300 After 13 Spine-Chilling Sessions

The Pakistani rupee surged even higher against the US Dollar today after opening trade at 305 in the interbank market. At 12 PM, it was bullish, rising as high as 297 after gaining ~Rs. 8 against the greenback, in tandem with opening-bell bulls which saw open market rates recover into the 296 category before parrying movement. Later, the interbank rate eased to the 299 level between 1:30 PM and 2:30 PM before anchoring trends for the remainder of the day. From 338-335 seen on Monday, open market rates across multiple currency counters stood in the 296-299 range today. Since September 4, the open market rate has recovered massively by roughly Rs. 40 against the greenback. At close, the PKR appreciated by 0.42 percent to close at 299.89 after gaining Rs. 1.27 against the dollar today. The gap between interbank and open market rates has massively shrunk by roughly Rs. 41 in September. From 337 reported last Monday, the rates have gone down to as low as 296 and have since continued brief spikes till 299 today. As reported on Monday, money exchanges have reported a heavy convergence of sellers and exporters eager to cash in before the rupee/$ rate settles on a level likely around 295-298 this week. Economic Analyst A H H Soomro told ProPakistani, Pertinently, the rupee is down nearly Rs. 80 since January 2023. Since April 2022, it is down over Rs. 127 against the greenback. As per exchange rate movements witnessed today, the PKR has gained over Rs. 1.2 against the dollar. Since last week, the federal government alongside state agencies has initiated a massive crackdown against black market dealers which helped boost the PKR’s valuation. In the past few days, scores of exporters have frequented cash counters to exchange dollars in bulk. If continued, the prevalent momentum could see the market correct itself by another Rs. 10 in the coming days or weeks. The PKR was green against all of the other major currencies in the interbank market today. It gained 43 paisas against the Canadian Dollar (CAD), 74 paisas against the Australian Dollar (AUD), Rs. 1.53 against the Euro (EUR), and Rs. 2.73 against the British Pound (GBP). Moreover, it gained 34 paisas against the Saudi Riyal (SAR) and 34 paisas against the UAE Dirham (AED) in today’s interbank currency market.