Rupee ends flat against dollar

KARACHI: The rupee held steady against the dollar in the interbank market on Thursday owing to matching demand and supply of dollars, dealers said.

The rupee ended at 278.7 per dollar, unchanged from the previous close.Despite the market opening after a holiday, dealers reported that the local currency remained steady. This resulted from the dollars’ supply and demand in the market being equal.

Markets were closed for a public holiday on Wednesday on account of Independence Day.The rupee also ended flat at 280.4 versus the greenback in the open market.Analysts expect the rupee to stay stable in the short to medium term. The rationale is that by the end of this month, the board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is likely to approve Pakistan’s 37-month loan programme.

Remittances from Pakistanis employed abroad continue to hover around $3 billion each month. Analysts also believe that Pakistan will be able to successfully launch a series of Panda bonds, strengthening its forex position.The central bank’s forex reserves remained stable at $9 billion, and exports are increasing.