KARACHI: Amid strong demand from importers due to high commodity prices especially oil, the US dollar soared to an all-time high against the rupee in the interbank market on Tuesday.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan’s official rates, the greenback closed at 178.61 after a day-on-day appreciation of 48 paise or 0.27 per cent from Monday’s Rs178.13.

However, interbank dealers quoted a slightly higher closing at Rs178.70.

“The demand pressure started from early hours which pushed the dollar rates high,” said an interbank dealer, adding that pressure continued till the end of the session.

Most of the currency experts believe that the dollar would maintain its upward journey in the coming days due to uncertainty on the external front in the backdrop of the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine.

They said that there was no direct link of this war with Pakistan but the bullish oil and commodity prices on the international markets have boosted the demand for dollars.

RDA attracts $3.6bn

The latest information shared by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on its website shows the country has so far received $3.632 billion through Roshan Digital Account (RDA).

The SBP governor has recently said the amount of RDA was more than the foreign direct investments and loans received from International Monetary Fund. The details showed that most of the RDA investment was meant for Naya Pakistan Certificate as it rose to $2.494bn by end of February.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2022