The Pakistani rupee remained slowly unchanged against the US dollar on Friday, falling approximately 0.06% during interbank trading.
Around 12 p.m., the rupee was trading at 285.20, down Re0.18.
In the interbank market on Thursday, the rupee rose marginally to settle at 285.38, or 0.09% higher against the US dollar.
Aisha Ghaus Pasha, Minister of State for Finance, stated on Thursday that the agreement on the 9th review has been delayed because the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is not ready to reduce the external financing requirement to $3 billion. She also stated categorically that there is no Plan-B and that the government is committed to the IMF programme.
The restart of the stalled IMF plan, which has been suspended since November of last year, is critical for the country’s cash-strapped economy.
SBP’s reserves fell by $102 million to $4.091 billion as a result of external debt payments.
Meanwhile, the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation reached a new high of 38% year on year in May 2023, up from 36.4% the previous month, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).
Globally, the US dollar remained near a one-week low versus key peers on Friday, on track for its worst week since mid-January, as expectations that the Federal Reserve will refrain from raising interest rates this month grew.
In Asian trade, the US dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six rival currencies, fell 0.06% to 103.48, extending a 0.62% drop from Thursday, its worst day in over a month.
The index is on track to lose 0.73% this week.
Oil prices, a major measure of currency parity, surged on Friday as markets assessed the potential of price-supportive OPEC+ production cutbacks over the weekend, after the passing of a US debt ceiling bill in Washington.
