KARACHI: Pakistan’s rupee hit a record low on Monday of 173.20 in intraday trading against the US dollar before closing at 172.78, below the previous close of 171.18, after reports of a failure of talks with the International Monetary Fund, traders said.
The government's finance ministry on Monday dismissed reports by local media over the weekend that talks from October 4 to 15 for the release of a $1 billion loan tranche were inconclusive.
“Negotiations between Pakistan and IMF are moving forward positively. No timeframe was set at any stage for the conclusion of the talks,” a statement issued by Finance Ministry said.
In June, a similar round of talks between the two sides failed to bring agreement on conditions for the tranche.
“The uncertainty regarding the IMF program after news reports emerged that Pakistan and IMF have failed to agree on certain conditions has resulted in today’s depreciation of rupee,” Atif Zafar, chief economist and director at Topline Securities told Reuters.
