PKR continues to recover against USD

KARACHI: The Pakistani rupee continued to recover against the US dollar in the interbank market, ARY News reported on Friday quoting SBP.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the local unit recovered Rs0.61 against USD to close at 284.40. The US dollar closed at Rs284.91 the other day.

Currency dealers believe the market increased on a report about a $1 billion commitment by the UAE.

Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said on Friday that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has confirmed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that it will provide support of $1 billion to Pakistan.

“UAE authorities have confirmed to IMF for their bilateral support of US $1 billion to Pakistan,” Dar said in a tweet today.

Ishaq Dar added that the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) was now “engaged for needful documentation for taking the said deposit from UAE authorities”.

The move will pave way for Pakistan to unlock the months-long delayed $1.1 billion IMF loan tranche to shore up the country’s struggling economy.

Pakistan has less than a month’s worth of foreign exchange reserves and is awaiting a bailout package of $1.1 billion from the IMF that has been delayed since November over issues related to fiscal policy adjustments.

To unlock the funding, the government has cut back on subsidies, removed an artificial cap on the exchange rate, added taxes and raised fuel prices.