The dollar continues to fall against the rupee for the fifth session in a row.
During intraday activity in the interbank market on Thursday, the Pakistani rupee gained ground versus the US dollar for the fifth consecutive session.
The rupee rose 3.79 percent versus the dollar to 225, down from Rs228.80 at the closing on Wednesday. The rupee rose substantially the day before, while the dollar sank 9.8 percent, or 4.19 percent.
Speaking on Geo Pakistan, Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP) Chairman Malik Bostan stated that the current government’s promises would take time to fulfil in the past, but this time, just a few days after Finance Minister Miftah Ismail stated that Pakistan’s import bill would be reduced, it actually fell by $2 billion.
According to data from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), imports fell by 38.3 percent over the previous month, as the government banned a number of luxury commodities in order to manage the economy’s dollar shortfall.
Not only were imports down, but exports were down as well. However, the rupee’s pressure lessened as the trade deficit fell by 18.3 percent to $2.64 billion in July 2022, down from $3.235 billion in July 2021. The shortfall was $4.96 billion in June 2022.
Aside from that, Army Chief of Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa recently spoke with US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman to help speed the resurrection of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) loan programme.Following this, the money lender issued a statement stating that Pakistan has met all of the requirements for the combined seventh and eighth reviews of the Extended Fund Facility, demonstrating that the army chief’s call had an impact.
Esther Perez Ruiz, the IMF’s Resident Representative in Pakistan, said in a statement Tuesday that a board meeting is provisionally set for late August after enough finance assurances are secured. If the IMF provides the $1.2 billion later in August, the dollar might fall to 190-180 against the Pakistan rupee and continue to smash records, according to Bostan. “
…this was the actual dollar level. Prior to the country’s political unrest and the Punjab by-elections, which shook everything, including the markets, the dollar was not at such high levels., he explained.
Earlier, there were concerns over whether the government would survive, but now, following the Election Commission of Pakistan’s decision on the PTI’s unlawful funding, the coalition has opted to move the Supreme Court, signalling that it is here to stay.
