Rupee misery continues, dollar hits fresh record high of Rs176.79

KARACHI: The dollar jumped to the new historic high of Rs176.79 on Tuesday, as Saudi fund deposits failed to leave any positive impact despite expectations.

The exchange rate witnessed a decline of 31 paisas to end at Rs176.79 against the dollar from the previous day’s closing of Rs176.48 in the interbank foreign exchange market.

Previously, the dollar hit an all-time high of Rs176.77 on December 3, 2021.

The market was expecting a handsome recovery in the rupee value; following the deposit of $3 billion by Saudi Development Fund (SDF) with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on December 4, 2021.

A day ago, the market recorded some recovery in the rupee value; however, large imports kept the dollar demand higher.

According to the official data of the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) released on Monday, the import bill of the country surged 69.17 per cent to $33 billion during the first five months (July-November) 2021/22, compared with $19.47 billion in the corresponding months of the last fiscal year.

The large imports also widened the trade deficit sharply. The trade deficit during the months under review widened 112 per cent to $20.59 billion, compared with the deficit of $9.72 billion in the corresponding period of the last fiscal year.

The rupee remained under pressure since the start of the current fiscal year. The local currency fell Rs19.25, or 12.22 per cent, from June 30, 2021 closing of Rs157.54 to the closing of Rs176.79 on December 7, 2021.

In the open market, the buying and selling of the dollars was recorded at Rs177/Rs178.60 at 3:55PM PST.

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