The Pakistani rupee maintained its momentum against the US dollar in the open-market on Friday, gaining beyond its value in the inter-bank market as well.
Currency dealers Business Recorder reached out to said the rupee was quoted at 282 for selling and 279 for buying purposes for customers.
At the end of trading on Friday, the currency closed at 281.5 for selling and 278.5 for buying, according to data provided by the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP).
In the inter-bank, the rupee closed at 282.69 against the greenback.
Currency dealers said the improvement of dollar supply in the inter-bank market is being reflected in the open market.
This is also one of the rare times when the open-market rates are being quoted below the prevailing inter-bank rates.
The ongoing appreciation comes after the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) ramped up efforts to clip the wings of the high-flying dollar and announced a list of “structural reforms” last month, targeting the Exchange Companies (ECs).
Apart from the central bank measures, the caretaker setup also announced taking administrative steps to tighten the screws around smuggling and hoarding of currency and as a result, countrywide raids were reported with scores of illegal currency exchanges being shut down and foreign currency worth millions confiscated.
The development comes at an apt time for Pakistan which is set to enter the next review of its Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in November.
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