Rupee gains further

KARACHI: The rupee marginally gained on Tuesday in continuation of its upward movement for the ninth straight session, as good dollar inflows from remittances, exports and international financial institutions boosting the local unit.

In the interbank market, the rupee closed at 160.91/dollar versus its previous closing of 161.05 in the interbank foreign exchange market. The rupee gained 14 paisas during the day.

The rupee closed at 161.10 against the dollar, slightly higher from Monday’s closing of 161.20 in the open market.

Traders said the rupee maintained its upward trend due to the lack of heavy import payments.

“There are [a] few buyers in the market. Supplies are more than the demand,” a foreign exchange trader said.

The rupee has breached the 161 level, which is widely expected by the traders and analysts. However, most traders are clueless about the future direction of the domestic currency.

“It’s hard to predict whether the rupee will continue to gain. But we don’t see any downside pressure on the rupee at least in the coming month, as the demand for the dollar for import payments seems to remain dull,” another trader said.

“The inflows available in the market are pretty sufficient to meet the importers’ and foreign debt repayments demand.”

Oil prices are also declining because of rising coronavirus infections globally, which will also provide a relief to the country’s import bill, supporting the rupee.