Pakistani Rupee rises further against the US dollar in the interbank market

Pakistani Rupee rises further against the US dollar in the interbank market

Pakistani Rupee appreciated by 13 paisas (+0.08pc) against the US Dollar on Wednesday, making it the third straight day of gains against the greenback during the ongoing week.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the US Dollar opened at Rs158.89 and closed at Rs158.76 on Wednesday. The PKR traded within a very narrow range of 15 paisa per USD, showing an intraday high bid of 158.83 and an intraday low offer of 158.73. The rupee gained Re0.34 against the greenback during the last three days.

Currency dealers said that rupee gained against the international currency owing to improved inflows of workers’ remittances and export payments. They said that due to the recent fall in coronavirus cases, the market remained optimistic and dollar demand for import payment is gradually rising. They expressed optimism that the inflows of export receipts and workers’ remittances would help the local unit gain further appreciation in coming days.

Meanwhile, foreign exchange reserves of the country stand at $20.058 billion by week ended February 12, 2021, SBP said. The official foreign exchange reserves of the central bank stood at $12.889 billion while reserves held by commercial banks clocked in at $7.168 billion by the week ended February 12, 2021.