Miftah Ismail, the Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, said that the government would take several steps in the next few days to stabilize the currency market, but he didn’t say what those steps would be.
The finance minister said that there weren’t enough dollars in the market.
“At the beginning of August, the rates for dollars at the curb market were lower than those at the inter-bank. Rates have gone up, though, because Afghanistan wants more dollars.”
So, the flow of dollars from the street into the interbank market has slowed down,” he said.
His speech comes at a time when the Pakistani rupee is under more pressure than ever.
On Monday, it fell against the US dollar for the seventh straight session. It ended up at 229.82, down 0.71%, in the interbank market, where there were not enough dollars to go around. This put pressure on the local currency.
Miftah said that the government would take steps to lower the dollar rate and that, unlike the previous government, it would not make rash or populist decisions.
Without saying which bank was involved, the finance minister said that some banks are selling dollars at higher rates to take advantage of the market’s instability.
“The prime minister knows about this and has asked the head of the central bank for a report.” The State Bank of Pakistan has also asked eight banks to explain why they should not be closed.
After following the rules, these banks will be fined. We’ll make these banks suffer.”
Miftah said that to stop speculation in the currency market, both administrative and market-based steps need to be taken. Miftah said that the government is taking steps to get the economy moving again. “After the floods, we need to work even harder.”
The prime minister has set up two committees that will look at foreign exchange and energy imports,” he said.
Mahnur is MS(development Studies)Student at NUST University, completed BS Hons in Eng Literature. Content Writer, Policy analyst, Climate Change specialist, Teacher, HR Recruiter.
