After a day's respite, the Pakistani rupee resumed its downward movement against the greenback on the back of concerns regarding the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) willingness to get on board with the new measures announced by the government.
The local currency gained 0.12% to close at Rs177.62 in the inter-bank market on Wednesday.
After posting a fresh decline of 0.12%, the Pakistani rupee has depreciated by 12.74% (or Rs20.08) since the start of the current fiscal year on July 1, 2021, data released by the central bank revealed.
Pakistan and the IMF are meeting this week to review the relief package Prime Minister Imran Khan announced to lower petrol, diesel and electricity prices in the face of a difficult international environment.
The IMF team will kick-start virtual parleys with Pakistani authorities on March 4, and these talks will continue for two weeks for the completion of the seventh review under the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) program.
The rupee had maintained a downward trend for the past ten months. It has lost 16.64% (or Rs25.35) to date, compared to the record high of Rs152.27 recorded in May 2021.
Traders are closely watching the outcome of the plenary session of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) starting from February 21 to March 4 in Paris for the clue regarding the rupee’s future course.
The FATF's upcoming decision would decide whether Pakistan should exit from the grey list.
