Record decline in Pakistani rupee continues amid uncertainty over IMF help, reaches 262 against dollar

The Pakistani rupee has depreciated by Rs 34 at the interbank since Thursday, the biggest fall in both absolute and percentage terms since the introduction of the new exchange rate system in 1999.

New Delhi: Amidst the economic crisis in Pakistan, the Pakistani rupee is creating a new record every day. The Pakistani rupee touched 262 against a dollar on Friday, setting a new record for rupee depreciation in Pakistan. The currency at one stage closed at 265 in the open market before making a minor correction by the end of the day.266 in the rupee and had fallen to Rs 266 in the interbank. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, as soon as the market opened on Friday, the rupee depreciated by Rs 7.17 and 2.73 per cent as compared to Thursday.The Pakistani rupee has depreciated by Rs 34 at the interbank since Thursday, the biggest fall in both absolute and percentage terms since the introduction of the new exchange rate system in 1999.The Pakistani rupee depreciated further after the government removed an informal cap on the USD-PKR exchange rate to revive the International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programme. The government's decision comes after exchange companies on Thursday announced the removal of self-imposed rate caps in the open market.Significantly, on Thursday, the Pakistani rupee had stopped at 255 against one dollar. Which was its lowest level till Thursday. This fall in the Pakistani rupee has come after the government loosened its grip on the exchange rate.The reason behind this decline is that Pakistan has accepted the condition of IMF and has left its rupee open according to the price of the open market. Earlier, Pakistan's Finance Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar had artificially capped the value of one dollar at around Rs 231 so that there would not be too much grit. But this had become a major obstacle in getting dollars into the government treasury.The loss due to this was that instead of coming to the government bank for exchange, the dollar was going to the open market where it was getting a higher price. This is also a major reason for the decrease in dollars in the government treasury of Pakistan. According to experts, Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves have remained only $ 4.34 billion, which is almost empty.