Pakistan’s open market is facing a scarcity of the UAE dirhams (AED) afterthe Gulf state made it mandatory for passengers to declare AED 5,000 attheir arrival at Emirati airports.
The recent move has resulted in a shortage of dirhams in Pakistan’scurrency market and has increased the rates of the US dollar (USD).Meanwhile, the sudden shortage of UAE dirhams in the open market has alsoinflated its price as compared to the interbank rate.
The President of the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP),Malik Bostan, stated that around 21 Pakistani flights carrying about 4,200Pakistanis arrive in Dubai every day, and they need approximately AED 21million a day.
He explained that “the dirham is no longer accessible in the open marketwhilst the fee has also gone up,” and added, that “those handy overseascurrencies are exported to Dubai to convey back an equal amount of USdollars”.
“Increased demand for the UAE’s currency has created a shortage ofdollars,” Bostan remarked.
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The Civil Aviation Authority’s (CAA) new law that requires all passengersto declare cash and jewelry has reportedly led to this situation, Bostanclaimed. He said that most people arriving from the Middle East have riyalsand dirhams. Moreover, they send money through their colleagues to give totheir families in Pakistan but no one would take this risk now, he opined.
Bostan also mentioned that the amount of foreign currencies arriving in theopen market has declined sharply by $3 million per day. The rupee that hadrecovered to Rs. 207 against the USD is now trading at Rs. 212 in the openmarket, and it is also declining in the interbank market.
