Intra-day update: Rupee falls marginally against US Dollar

The Pakistani rupee registered a marginal decline against the US dollar during the opening hours of trading in the inter-bank market on Tuesday.

the currency was hovering at Rs278.35, a loss of Rs0.05 against the greenback. On Monday, the currency had settled at Rs278.30 against the US dollar, on Tuesday.

The decline in the rupee comes as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has not yet included Pakistan’s 37-month Extended Fund Facility Arrangement (EFF) of about $7 billion on the agenda of its executive board meetings scheduled till July 31.

The Pakistani authorities and the IMF team reached a staff-level agreement on the EFF on July 12. However, the IMF’s website shows the executive board meetings scheduled for July 24, 26, 29 and 31, but Pakistan’s EFF is not on the agenda.Globally, the US dollar was little changed, while oil prices steadied on Tuesday after falling for the past two sessions. Brent crude futures for September rose 2 cents to $82.42 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude for September dipped 2 cents to $78.38 per barrel.The marginal decline in the rupee and the lack of progress on the IMF program have raised concerns about Pakistan’s economic outlook in the near term.