Rupee Rises 4th Day in a Row Against US Dollar to End the Week

 

The Pakistani rupee rose 4th day in a row against the US Dollar today after opening trade at 285 in the interbank market. bullish, jumping to the 284 level against the greenback after gaining ~Rs. 1 during early-day trade.

The interbank rate remained on the same level before anchoring trends for the remainder of the day. Open market rates across multiple currency counters stood in the 284-286 range today.

At close, the PKR appreciated by 0.07 percent to close at 284.97 after gaining 20 paisas against the dollar today.

The rupee closed in the green for 4th day in a row today. On a calendar year-to-date basis, it has depreciated by 20.5 percent and appreciated by 0.36 percent on a fiscal YTD basis.

Overall, the rupee is down nearly Rs. 68 since January 2023. Since April 2022, it is down over Rs. 115 against the greenback. As per exchange rate movements witnessed today, the PKR has gained 20 paisas against the dollar.

A trader said near-term increases in forex reserves may support the PKR against top global currencies but expectations all around spell mostly grim.

Notably, foreign currency reserves held by the SBP were recorded at $7.257 billion, up $77 million compared to $7.180 billion on November 17.

Overall liquid foreign currency reserves held by the country, including net reserves held by banks other than the SBP, stood at $12.393 billion, up $91 million over the previous week. The net reserves held by banks stood at $5.136 billion, registering an increase of $14 million during the week.

On Wednesday, the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) on behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia extended the term for the deposit of $3 billion placed with SBP, maturing on December 5, 2023, for another year.