Rupee rises for second straight session

KARACHI: The rupee extended gains against the dollar for the second consecutive session in the interbank market on Friday.

The rupee ended at 277.75 to the dollar, up from 277.95 in the previous session.

Dealers said that the tepid dollar demand from importers was the reason why the local unit was rising. The rupee was also supported by the steady increase in foreign exchange reserves, which demonstrated that there was enough of dollar liquidity available in the market.

In the open market, the rupee also marginally increased versus the greenback. It was trading at 278.77 per dollar, up from 277.94 in the previous session.

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank rose by $29 million to $11.29 billion as of November 15.

The country’s forex reserves inched up by $2 million to $15.968 billion. However, the reserves of commercial banks decreased by $27 million to $4.68 billion.

The ongoing improvement in the external current account due to higher remittances and a gradual recovery in exports helped increase the forex reserves.

Moreover, the country received the first tranche from the International Monetary Fund’s Extended Fund Facility programme in late September. The SBP’s dollar buying from the interbank market also contributed to the buildup of the reserves.