Rupee loses 76 paisa against US dollar, KSE-100 drops over 700 points
Since beginning of this fiscal year, the rupee has lost more than 21pc of its value to the dollar.
KARACHI (Dunya News) – The value of the US dollar again crossed Rs150 mark in early trading on Tuesday in the interbank with the gain of 76 paisa. The new rate of greenback is Rs150.50.
Yesterday, dollar’s price in open market was pushed to 149.74 amid falling demand coupled with a surge in supply in the preceding session. In the interbank market, the greenback was being traded at Rs149.60 as compared to Rs150.90 in the last session, posting a decline of Rs1.30.
According to analysts, overseas Pakistanis are sending huge amounts of remittance ahead of Eidul Fitr to their families and relatives — boosting the supply of dollars in the open market.
Since the beginning of this fiscal year, the rupee has lost more than 21pc of its value to the dollar.
The decline in the rupee’s value during the past two weeks and the lagged impact of previous bouts of depreciation have pushed up the prices of almost all essential items, including flour, dates, meat, fruit etc during Ramzan.
The rupee began its downward spiral last week on the back of the signing of a bailout agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF had, in its statement on the programme, referred to a “market determined exchange rate”, which the financial markets did not take very well.
Resultantly, speculation broke out in the forex markets, with small and large investors looking towards the greenback, and some currency dealers hoarding dollars, leading to a shortage in the market.
PSX drops over 700 points
The stock market witnessed a drop of 700 points to settle around 34,900 levels as the benchmark KSE 100-share Index on Tuesday retreated towards finishing trading on a negative note with investors adopting a cautious approach ahead of announcement of the federal budget.
As uncertainty of the past few days evaporated, investors resumed buying with renewed vigour. The index shot up as soon as trading began following announcement that the delayed $3.2-billion Saudi oil and gas deferred payment facility would be operational from July this year.
Pakistan remains a net oil importing country and oil remains its largest import commodity.
