KARACHI: The Pakistani rupee continued to post marginal gains against the US dollar as it appreciated 0.03 percent in the inter-bank market during the previous week.
The local unit closed at 278.05, a gain of Re0.07 against 278.12 it had closed against the greenback a week earlier. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said the government intended to gradually reduce its reliance on commercial banks for financing by broadening access to government securities through digital investment platforms.
Speaking at the launch of the State Bank of Pakistan’s InvestPak Portal during the previous week, Aurangzeb termed the portal “beginning of a new era of investment”.
The central bank launched the InvestPak Portal as a digital investment platform designed to streamline and digitise the process of investing in government securities for both individual and corporate investors.
Meanwhile, overseas workers’ remittances to Pakistan increased by 9 percent to USD 41.6 billion during July-June FY26, up from USD 38.3 billion in the previous fiscal year. During June, remittances stood at USD 3.475 billion, according to data from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). In terms of growth, remittances declined by 18 percent on a month-on-month basis but were up 2 percent on a year-on-year basis. The foreign exchange reserves held by the SBP increased by USD 1.94 billion during the week ended on July 3, 2026, supported by realisation of Government of Pakistan (GoP) inflows. The country’s total liquid foreign exchange reserves stood at USD 23.99 billion as of July 3. Of the total, the SBP held USD 18.47 billion in foreign exchange reserves, while commercial banks held USD 5.52 billion.
Open-market rates
In the open market, the PKR lost 10 paise for buying and 8 paise for selling against USD, closing at 278.82 and 279.44, respectively.
Against Euro, the PKR lost 93 paise for buying and 51 paise for selling, closing at 319.78 and 322.63, respectively. Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 15 paise for buying and 12 paise for selling, closing at 76.10 and 76.69, respectively.
Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 21 paise for buying and 11 paise for selling, closing at 74.50 and 74.99, respectively.
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Weekly inter-bank market rates for dollar
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Bid Close Rs. 278.05
Offer Close Rs. 278.25
Bid Open Rs. 278.12
Offer Open Rs. 278.32
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Weekly open-market rates for dollar
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Bid Close Rs. 278.82
Offer Close Rs. 279.44
Bid Open Rs. 278.72
Offer Open Rs. 279.36
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Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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