The Pakistani rupee maintained an upward momentum against the US dollar, as it appreciated 1.04% in the inter-bank market on Thursday amid expectations of the resumption of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.

As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the currency closed at 270.51 against the US dollar, an increase of Rs2.82. The currency has depreciated by 23.7% during the ongoing fiscal year against the greenback.

The rupee had also made significant strides against the US dollar on Wednesday, closing at 273.33 against the US dollar, an appreciation of Rs2.95 or 1.08%.

The appreciation is “happening amid hope an IMF staff-level agreement will happen soon,” said Mohammed Sohail, CEO Topline Securities in a note.

Fahad Rauf, Head of Research at Ismail Iqbal Securities Limited, told Business Recorder reports suggest the IMF will submit its Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies to the Pakistani authorities today, “leading to expectations the IMF programme will be resumed soon”.

The expert said that the resumption of the stalled programme would be a sentiment booster for the market. “However, the currency would remain under pressure until inflows from bilateral and multilateral institutions are materialised. “

“Unless we see surplus inflows there wouldn’t be sustainable appreciation,” he added.

Find more details on Business Recorder website.