Shaukat Tarin sees rupee strengthening after IMF approval

Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin said on Saturday that Pakistan's rupee has started appreciating against the US dollar following the approval of International Monetary Fund (IMF).

On Wednesday, the IMF Executive Board completed the sixth review under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Pakistan, allowing for an immediate purchase equivalent to about $1 billion for budgetary support.

Following the approval, the rupee showed gains against the USD. On Friday the rupee appreciated by over Re1 or 0.60% in the inter-bank market to settle at its highest level since November 23 last year.

Meanwhile, Tarin, talking to the state broadcaster in Beijing, warned market elements involved in speculating and hoarding the dollar.

“Avoid speculations and believe in the value of your rupee,” he said, adding that the rupee will gain further strength.

On Friday, Pakistan received inflows of over $1 billion from the IMF as loan tranche.

“Following the successful completion of the 6th review of the IMF program, SBP has received the next tranche of $1.053 billion”, SBP confirmed on its Twitter account.

These inflows will be used to build the depleting foreign exchange reserves of the country and finance the rising current account deficit. This comes as the SBP’s foreign exchange reserves fell sharply $1.95 billion during January due to external debt servicing and other official payments.

Regarding Prime Minister Imran Khan's vital four-day trip to China, the finance minister was confident that the discussion with the Chinese side will help improve Pakistan's economy.

“Prime Minister's visit to China will have far-reaching effects on the economy. Economic and trade cooperation will be discussed with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang,” said Tarin.