Now, the rupee is just around Rs3 away from the record low of Rs299/$. According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP)’s data, the currency depreciated 0.29%, or Rs0.86, to Rs295.78 against the greenback. Otherwise, an improvement in the country’s foreign currency reserves on a week-on-week basis and a drop in oil prices in the world market would have lent support to the rupee. The foreign exchange reserves, held by the SBP, slightly improved by $12 million to $8.05 billion in the week ended on August 11, 2023. The central bank kept REER around 95-96 in the past when the reserves provided three months of import cover in mid-2022 compared to the two-month import cover now.

Source: The Express Tribune August 19, 2023 11:52 UTC