KARACHI: Amid uncertainty over the resumption of the stalled International Monetary Fund (IMF) program, Pakistani rupee on Monday registered significant decline against the US dollar, depreciating 0.82% in the interbank.
As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee settled at 284.03, a loss of Rs2.32.
Interbank closing #ExchangeRate for todayhttps://t.co/8QF1Pw7wDl pic.twitter.com/vkRNTYC1jC
— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) March 20, 2023
During the previous week, the rupee had depreciated a marginal 0.33%, aided by recovery on the final two days to settle at 281.71 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market.
The rupee’s stability was maintained by a strengthening foreign exchange position brought on by loan inflows from Chinese institutions, but the market is still worried about the restart of a crucial International Monetary Fund (IMF) program. The IMF has been holding up Pakistan’s $1.1 billion rescue package since November due to problems in changing its economic strategy.
Meanwhile, IMF has refuted rumors that any conditions were imposed on Pakistan’s missile or nuclear programs.
It is worth mentioning that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had assured the Senate last week that the IMF agreement would be signed “soon”. During the same session, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said that an assurance from “friendly countries” to fund a balance of payment gap was the last hurdle in securing an IMF deal.
