KARACHI: The Pakistani Rupee faced a steep slide on Tuesday against Dollar.
Pakistani Rupee fell five percent in the interbank foreign exchange marketon Tuesday after international payments and falling reserves prompted anegative trend in the currency.
It was the first time since December 2017 when the currency fell.Economists have suggested that the rupee’s depreciation would help correctthe balance of payment problem, although it would erode the purchasingpower of the general public.
The rupee’s fall from 110.57 a dollar in the interbank foreign exchangemarket yesterday to 115 at the close of business has left the marketunsettled.
The 4.51 percent fall in a single day is the highest recorded depreciationin the currency’s value since 2008.
The rupee has lost almost 10 percent of its value in the present fiscalyear.
The surge in dollar’s value has been attributed to Pakistan’s reliance onimported goods. The country’s trade deficit has stood at almost 20 billiondollars in the past eight months, according to statistics issued by theState Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
Pakistan’s imports amount up to 35 billion dollars while the exports standat a meagre 16 billion dollars, leaving a huge gap between the paymentsreceived and made.