ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s national currency on Wednesday hit another historic low of Rs173.47 against the United State dollar (USD) amid uncertainty surrounding ongoing talks between officials from the IMF and Pakistan for the release of the latest tranche of a bailout package, traders and analysts said.
In 2019, Pakistan reached an accord with the International Monetary Fund for a three-year, $6 billion bailout package aimed at shoring up fragile public finances and strengthening a slowing economy.
Pakistani and IMF officials are currently engaged in a fresh round of talks for the release of a $1 billion tranche of the loan.
The central bank said the Pakistani rupee closed up by 0.40 percent at Rs173.47 against the greenback in the interbank market as compared to Rs172.78 at the close of last week. The currency also depreciated in the open market where it was trading at Rs174 for buying and Rs174.50 for selling against the greenback, according to the Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan (ECAP).
“The open market is following the interbank market where Pak rupee is under pressure,” ECAP general secretary Zafar Parach said.
“There are no more sellers in the open market due to the uncertain outcome of talks with the IMF and volumes have declined substantially,” Paracha added. “The daily trading volume in the open market has declined from around $100-around to $50-60 million.”
Analysts said the rupee was under pressure in the interbank market due to increasing imports and a plunging current account deficit.
“The demand for import payments is still high which is pushing the demand for the greenback,” Samiullah Tariq, Director Research at Pakistan Kuwait Investment, told Arab News.
However, the stock market rebounded on Wednesday and posted 1.95 percent gains, or 45,499.46 points, at closing.
“The market has now got an understanding that it cannot move the dollar,” Tariq said. “The dollar movement is not part and parcel of trade and there is no panic.”
Pakistani rupee hits all-time low against dollar amid uncertainty surrounding IMF talks
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Pakistani rupee hits all-time low against dollar amid uncertainty surrounding IMF talks
- Separately, the stock market rebounded on Wednesday and posted 1.95 percent gains at closing
- Pakistan and IMF are currently engaged in talks for release of $1 billion tranche of $6 billion bailout package
Pakistan IT exports rise nearly 20 percent to $2.61 billion in first seven months of fiscal year
- January ICT exports climb to $374 million year-on-year
- Sector remains country’s top-earning services export
KARACHI: Pakistan’s information and communication technology (ICT) export earnings rose 19.78 percent year-on-year to $2.61 billion in the first seven months of the fiscal year ending June 2026, the IT ministry said on Tuesday, highlighting the sector’s growing role as a source of foreign exchange.
Pakistan’s IT and IT-enabled services sector has emerged as one of the country’s fastest-growing sources of foreign exchange, generating over $3 billion annually and employing roughly a million freelancers in addition to formal software firms.
Unlike traditional manufacturing exports, the industry relies primarily on remote digital labor, from software development to back-office services, making it resilient during economic crises but constrained by payment barriers, talent migration and infrastructure reliability challenges. However, IT services require minimal imports and benefit from a large pool of young workers and freelancers, making the sector central to government plans to boost dollar inflows and reduce pressure on the balance of payments.
“ICT export remittances surged 19.78 percent, reaching $ 2.61 billion during the first seven months of FY 2025-26 compared to $ 2.18 billion achieved during the corresponding period last year,” the IT ministry said in a statement.
Monthly exports also expanded, with ICT services exports reaching $374 million in January 2026, up 19.5 percent from $313 million a year earlier, according to the ministry’s data.
The ministry said ICT remained the country’s highest-earning services sector, well ahead of “other business services,” which generated $1.21 billion over the same July-January period.
Pakistan has increasingly relied on technology exports, including software development, outsourcing and freelance services, to generate foreign exchange as the economy adjusts under structural reforms and tight import controls following a balance-of-payments crisis.
Officials say continued growth will depend on easing payment bottlenecks, improving digital infrastructure and expanding higher-value technology services beyond traditional outsourcing.
