The first shift for the Pakistani Rupee’s exchange rate against the US Dollar in 2021 came as a loss of 14 paisas on the opening day of the week.
With a decrease of 14 paisas, PKR closed at Rs. 159.97 to the USD on Monday (January 4, 2021), as compared to Rs. 159.83 to the USD on the last trading day of 2020 (December 31, 2020). ------------------------------
------------------------------
Against other major currencies, except against Euro, PKR deteriorated on Monday. PKR gained 38 paisas against the Euro in the interbank market, financial analytics platform Capital Stake’s data showed.
[image: Image]
On the other hand, PKR lost 35 paisas to the GBP, 24 paisas to the Australian Dollar, and 45 paisas to the Canadian Dollar. UAE Dirham and Saudi Riyal also became more expensive against the Pak Rupee, as PKR lost 3 paisas and 4 paisas, respectively.
The Pakistani Rupee had a volatile 2020 after starting the year at Rs. 154.8795 against the US Dollar. The local currency ended the year at Rs. 159.83 against the greenback after touching an all-time low of Rs. 168.43 during the year.
Managing Director at Khadim Ali Shah Bukhari Securities, A.A.H Soomro, expects a steady rate till May-June of 2021. He predicted the parity to stay around Rs. 164-165 level as low oil prices, higher remittances, and the COVID-19 induced Current Account savings would keep the foreign exchange reserves and the Rupee with a comfortable margin.