Rupee slips against dollar

Geopolitical uncertainty with fluctuations in the exchange rate kept hitting hard the local currency as it lost 48-paisa against the US dollar on Tuesday. The greenback price rose to Rs176.23 in the interbank market after losing 11-paisa a day earlier. Despite higher inflows in the account of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee could not get stronger and this was mostly due to the high demand for dollars from importers. “The rupee gains for a brief period against the dollar but most of the time the US currency remains dominant,” said Atif Ahmed, a currency dealer in the interbank market. The US dollar was appreciating on the international currency market mainly due to four times higher oil prices. Oil payments are made in dollars so the demand for the US currency is high globally.