KARACHI, June 15(ABC): The Pakistani rupee continued its downward slide against the US dollar as it depreciated over Re1 in the interbank market during early morning trading on Wednesday.
The local currency shed Rs1.9 against the greenback and was trading at Rs206.25.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the currency closed at Rs205.16 on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) started in the green as the benchmark KSE-100 index recorded an increase of 439.39 points or 1.07% to reach 41,494.07 points as of 11am. This could be due to investors regaining confidence over hopes that Pakistan may exit Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.
The rupee plumbed to a fresh record low on Tuesday as doubts increased about the revival of the much-needed $6 billion IMF bailout package after the country’s recently unveiled budget could not satisfy the lender.
Traders said the rupee has been losing ground due to the balance of payment crisis and falling foreign exchange reserves. But, the IMF comments on the measures announced in the budget added new pressure on the domestic currency.
The IMF has asked Pakistan to take “additional measures” to strengthen the budget and bring it in line with the key objectives of the fund programme.