July, 19 (E.A Report) — Pakistani rupee stayed under pressure against US dollar for the fourth successive session, depreciating 0.27% on Wednesday.
Currency settled at 283.80, a decrease of Re0.76, as per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
On Tuesday, the rupee sustained losses against the US dollar for the third successive session, depreciating 1.34% to settle at 283.04 in the inter-bank market.
In a key development, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stressed a market-determined exchange rate.
The lender stated that reliance on administrative measures to manage imports since May 2022 and the tightly controlled exchange rate since September 2022 have caused significant damage to Pakistan’s growth and exacerbated external pressures by dissuading inflows, especially remittances.
Meanwhile, the government committed to the IMF that it would restrain non-priority spending including through energy sector measures aimed at credibly containing energy sector subsidies, the public wage bill, and pensions.
Internationally, the US dollar held just above an over one-year low on Wednesday as traders assessed the US rate outlook.
US dollar managed to nudge up after a mixed retail sales report overnight, with sales growth missing forecasts in June but consumers boosted or maintained spending elsewhere, pointing to consumer resilience that is likely to keep the economy on a solid growth path.
Against a basket of currencies, US dollar rebounded from a 15-month low hit in the previous session, with its index steadying at 99.943 in early Asia trade.