Rupee declines

The rupee continued to decline against the dollar on Wednesday, amid increased dollar demand from importers, dealers said. The rupee traded in the band of 138.50 and 138.85 early in the session.

However, it steadied and dealers said it closed at 138.83 to the dollar, compared with Tuesday’s close of 138.72.

Currency dealers said the local unit was under pressure due to some imports payments.

“The outlook for the rupee is clouded by uncertainty because of the developments with India last week,” a dealer said.

In the open market, the rupee maintained its overnight level and closed unchanged at 139 against the dollar on dull dollar demand.

Dealers said the market was nervous about the situation on the Line of Control due to which bilateral relations between Pakistan and India remained strained.

High-resolution satellite images reviewed by UK news agency show that a religious school purportedly run by Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) in northeastern Pakistan appears to be still standing days after India claimed its warplanes had hit the training camp on the site and killed a large number of militants.

However, the market reacted positive to government’s crackdown on the banned outfits in an effort to meet its commitment with the Financial Action Task Forceto curb money-laundering and terrorism financing.