As the dust about Pakistan-IMF loan deal has settled, the rupee could not sustain the heavy surge it experienced a day earlier and went down by Rs1.97 against the US dollar in the interbank market on Wednesday, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the rupee recorded a loss of Rs1.97 against the greenback and ended the day at Rs277.41.

https://twitter.com/StateBank_Pak/status/1676552938511298563

On Tuesday, the Pakistani rupee made giant stride and the US dollar, appreciating by 3.83% in the interbank market to settle at 275.44, an increase that came on the back of the loan agreement signed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

https://twitter.com/StateBank_Pak/status/1676194349296816128

In a related development, two leading global rating agencies have warned that Pakistan will require significantly more funds than what it’s receiving from the IMF to meet its debt maturities and to finance its economic recovery.

Moody’s Investors Service and Fitch Ratings that issued the warning are two of the big three credit rating agencies, recognised by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

The two agencies noted that Pakistan has to repay $25 billion in the current fiscal year to meet its debt obligations. The repayments include both principal and interest, and are about seven times Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves, according to Moody’s.

This is significantly more than the initial approval of a $3 billion IMF loan Pakistan has secured last week.

 

Reporter Ashraf Khan