Rupee rises for second day

KARACHI: The rupee continued to rise for a second consecutive session against the dollar in the interbank market on Thursday.

The rupee closed at 279.33 to the dollar, compared with Wednesday’s close of 279.50. It increased by 0.06 percent during the session. In the open market, the rupee gained 28 paisas versus the greenback. It was trading at 282.16 per dollar for selling, compared with 282.44 in the previous session.

Dealers stated that the rupee's stability was caused by an equal supply and demand for dollars. Besides, a deal to establish a new government was agreed upon by the political parties Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP). This helped improve investor confidence in the country’s economy and the currency as well.

Imran Khan, the jailed former prime minister of Pakistan, is reportedly going to write to the IMF, requesting that it conduct an independent audit of the contentious national elections held on February 8 before resuming talks with Islamabad.

Thanks to a short-term IMF bailout, Pakistan avoided defaulting last summer. However, the bailout package expires next month, and the next government will need to negotiate a long-term deal to maintain the $350 billion economy stable.