ISLAMABAD- The dollar is on the rise again and has just hit its highestlevel in the last four months, jumping back to Rs140 for the first timethis year.
The greenback was trading at Rs140 in opening hours of trade on Thursday,the level it last touched on December 21.
Thanks to dollars flowing in from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, the mostsought-after foreign currency traded at or below Rs139 level in 2019, butgained 80 paisa in one week to reach its current level.
The dollar had kept buyers and sellers on their toes last year because ofvolatility in its prices and hit its all-time high of Rs143.5 in Novemberlast year before closing at Rs140.3 the same day.
In 2018, the dollar appreciated 27% against the rupee, witnessing two ofits biggest ever single day jumps in the short span of one-and-a-halfmonths. It was one of the most volatile years in terms of exchange rates.
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Experts attribute last year’s rise in dollar rates to our depleting foreignexchange reserves, which fell below $7 billion in December.
This level was not sustainable beyond two months of import payments. Theshortage of dollars had kept rupee under pressure for most of 2018 andresulted in its devaluation.
