ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s rupee registered a marginal decline against the US dollar in the inter-bank market, and depreciated 0.04% in the opening hours of trading on Thursday.
At around 11:15am, the rupee was being quoted at 220.97, a depreciation of Re0.09 or 0.04% against the greenback, during intra-day trading.
On Wednesday, rupee registered a decline for the sixth straight session against the US dollar, and closed at 220.88 after depreciating Rs1.17.
As per market experts, the weakness in the local currency is driven by dwindling reserves and uncertainty regarding inflow commitments.
Speaking to media after the ‘All Pakistan Chartered Accountants Conference 2022 on Sustainability, Technology and Transformation in Islamabad’, the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said that the rupee was undervalued and it would soon recover to Rs200 per dollar mark, which is “its real value”.
“I assure you that we have ample foreign exchange reserves and they will not pose a problem for the country,” he said.
Meanwhile, in another key development, the current account deficit (CAD) declined for the third straight month in a row in September. It fell to $0.3 billion, less than half the level in August. In Q1FY23, the CAD has fallen to $2.2 billion from $3.5 billion in Q1FY22, mainly reflecting a decline in imports.