Rupee extends losses for third day

KARACHI: The rupee ended weaker against the dollar for a third consecutive session in the interbank market on Wednesday.

The rupee closed at 277.72 per dollar, slightly lower than its Tuesday’s closing rate of 277.67.According to dealers, the rupee experienced a little decline as importers’ demand for dollars exceeded exporters’ sales of dollars.

In the open market, nevertheless, the rupee strengthened a little. The local currency was trading at 279.61 to the dollar, against the 279.66 during the previous trading session. Dealers expect the rupee to continue to trade range-bound in the coming sessions. As a high-level delegation led by Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Investment Khalid al-Falih, consisting of 32 top private-sector companies is set to visit Pakistan from October 9 to October 11, the market sentiment is anticipated to improve.

Pakistan is estimating that Saudi Arabia will invest up to $15-20 billion in a variety of sectors and industries, such as the acquisition of shares or public-sector companies.In another major development, remittances from Pakistanis working abroad increased by 29 per cent year-on-year to $2.8 billion in September. These inflows stood at $8.8 billion in July-September FY25, a 39 per cent increase from a year ago.