KARACHI, Nov 18: The rupee firmed nearly one per cent against the dollar on Tuesday on foreign inflows and improved sentiment following the government’s agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $7.6 billion emergency loan, dealers said.

The rupee was quoted closing at 79.10/20 to the dollar, compared with Monday’s close of 79.80/90. Dealers said the rupee traded as low as 79.05 to the dollar.

Dealers said they expected the rupee to stabilise, at least in the short term, following the IMF accord, after a sharp depreciation this year as a balance of payments crisis developed. By the close on Tuesday, the rupee was 22 per cent weaker than it started the year.

“There were some inflows in the market and generally the sentiment has improved due to the IMF announcement,” said a currency dealer.

Dealers said there were exporters selling dollars against the forward counters and there were inflows.—Reuters