Rupee gains almost Rs1 against dollar in a day, hits over one-year high

KARACHI: The Pakistani rupee hit over a one-year high against the United States (US) dollar in the inter-bank currency market on Wednesday, ARY News reported.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the local currency appreciated by 98 paisa or 0.68% to Rs155.74 against the greenback. The dollar had finished at Rs157.72 against the rupee the other day.

Interbank closing #ExchangeRate for today: https://t.co/KQ8TfPtcXo pic.twitter.com/74M0qKLmAO

— SBP (@StateBank_Pak) March 17, 2021

Also Read: SBP foreign reserves rise $38mn to $13.16bn

The currency has recovered more than Rs12 during the last seven months since it touched an all-time low of Rs168.43 last year in August. Economic experts attribute the rupee appreciation to an increase in foreign currency inflows in shape of remittances.

On a cumulative basis, workers’ remittances touched $18.7 billion during the first seven months (Jul-Feb) of the current fiscal year, registering 24.1 per cent increase over the corresponding year of last year.

Also Read: Workers’ remittances top $2 billion for 9th straight month

On March 12, the central bank said the country’s foreign exchange reserves witnessed an increase of US$25 million in the week ending on March 5. Net reserves held by the SBP stood at $13.16 billion.