The Pakistani rupee touched a critical threshold of 200 in the open market against the US dollar with a fresh decline of Rs2.1 on Wednesday.
According to the Forex Association of Pakistan (FAP), the greenback climbed from Tuesday’s close of Rs195.74 to Rs197.25 at 10:23 am against the dollar during intraday trade.
The local currency plunged to yet another historic low despite suspected intervention by the central bank.
Meanwhile, Pakistan resumes talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Doha today for the revival of the stalled multibillion-dollar loan programme.
Investors are concerned as there is speculation in the market that the IMF may not agree to resume the loan programme following the government’s reluctance to implement the prerequisite conditions.
The market is also waiting for the outcome of the meetings held between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his coalition partners.
Analysts believe the rupee is gradually heading toward 200 in the interbank market in the days to come if the government doesn’t take immediate action to bring economic and political stability to the country.
Read more: Pakistani rupee slumps to 190 against USD
The current spell of the dollar’s persistent rise against the rupee began on Tuesday last week when the international currency hit a record high of Rs188.66. It then soared to Rs190.90 on Wednesday, rose past Rs192 on Thursday, reached Rs193.10 on Friday, climbed over Rs194 on Monday, and surged past Rs196 yesterday (Tuesday).
When the PM Shehbaz Sharif-led coalition government took over on April 11, the dollar was valued at Rs182.3. Since then, the rupee has lost Rs11.4 or 6.2 per cent of its value.