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‘Time to stop this madness now’: Politicians, analysts react to record rupee depreciation

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The rupee declined to a record new low on Tuesday, trading against the US dollar at 222 in the open market at mid-day trade.

The quick depreciation of the local currency within a matter of a few hours drew sharp criticism from politicians and analysts expressed concern over the economic fate of the country.

Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan said that when he was ousted via a vote of no confidence, the dollar stood at Rs178.

“Today it is Rs224 and in free fall despite IMF agreement,” he said.

“The economic meltdown shows Sharifs never had any expertise in running economy or administration. Their only expertise is looting, money laundering and getting NROs,” Khan alleged.

‘Time to stop this madness’

“It’s time to stop this madness now,” exclaimed PTI leader and former finance minister Asad Umar in a video message posted by the party’s official handle.

Umar said that Pakistan will fall so deep into an economic mess that it will become extremely difficult to pull it out if such a free fall of the rupee continues.

“For God’s sake this unnatural system made by a foreign hand must be brought to an end,” he urged, in reference to PTI’s claim that former prime minister Imran Khan’s removal through a vote of no-confidence was a “regime change conspiracy” due to what was his “independent foreign policy”.

Earlier, tweeting with his own handle, Umar remarked that “political uncertainty is bleeding the economy and inflicting tremendous pain on the people”.

“Time to stop this badly conceived, badly executed, totally gone wrong experiment. Pakistan cannot be made to suffer anymore for poor decisions,” he wrote.

‘Rupee sunk by 10 units ever since deal with IMF’

PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry, in a press conference, noted that the local currency has sunk by Rs10 “ever since an agreement was reached with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)”.

‘Killing inflation’

Journalist Mohammad Malick termed the development “untenable” and foresaw “killing inflation” ahead if the State Bank of Pakistan does not intervene and “restore sanity”.

“We need a full time SBP governor and [Minister for Finance] Miftah Ismail to refocus on this issue,” he said, adding: “Free fall of rupee guarantees economic disaster and free fall of government too.”

‘Rs10 lost in two days’

Economic journalist Shahbaz Rana drew attention to the fact that the rupee had lost Rs10 in value in just two days.

He called upon the finance minister to “no more sit idle” and let the rupee sink like this.

“SBP is without a governor for the last 75 days,” he lamented, calling it the “height of government indecisiveness”.

He warned that if the dollar’s ascent is not controlled, petrol and electricity prices will increase to “unimaginable levels”.

Rupee falls against dollar and pound

Former banker and political economist Yousuf Nazar noted at noon that the rupee has fallen to an all time low of Rs219 against the dollar and that it has also registered a decline against the pound, dropping to Rs264.

‘Are we waiting for Maryam Nawaz?’

Journalist Shahzad Iqbal in vexation wrote whether the government is waiting for Maryam Nawaz to tweet “Miftah please look into it”.

He said the country has seen no respite despite the IMF and Pakistan striking a staff level agreement and the assurance of disbursements rising to $4bn.

“Government seems to be clueless and has not appointed an SBP governor in the last three months,” Iqbal said.

100-dollar bill stashed away for grand kids

On a lighter note, Alpha Beta Core CEO Khurram Schezad tweeted a photo of a 100-dollar bill that he has preserved to give to his grand kids if he is alive by then.

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Finance Minister: A “big” IMF program is coming for Pakistan.

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Speaking at the Karachi Stock Exchange ceremony, the Finance Minister announced that meetings with IMF representatives would take place in Washington on April 14 and 15.

He applauded the caretaker government’s effort to bring about economic stability and predicted that the nation’s economy would stabilize with improved economic policies.

Muhammad Aurangzeb emphasized that in order to move the country’s economy toward stabilization, structural reforms must be implemented.

He restated that the nation’s recovery from the economic crisis depends heavily on the stock market. The stock market is, nevertheless, trending upward.

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Pakistan is still classified as a secondary emerging market by the FTSE.

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The nation could perhaps be demoted, according to the worldwide index provider, since its index weight has decreased over the previous few years.

Pakistan’s market capitalization peaked in 2017 at $100 billion, but it fell to $21 billion by 2024, according to a Bloomberg research.

It did, however, state that Pakistan’s standing as a secondary emerging market will remain unchanged due to favorable political changes brought about by the establishment of a stable government.

Bloomberg saw Shehbaz Sharif’s election as prime minister, who is open to reform, as a step in the right direction for the nation struggling financially.

Shehbaz Sharif, the president of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, was chosen on March 4 to serve as the country’s 24th prime minister.

With 201 votes, PM Shehbaz defeated Omar Ayub Khan of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) by 92 votes.

over the economy, earlier this month, Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) came to an agreement at the staff level over the second and last review conducted under Pakistan’s Stand-By Arrangement.

The IMF secured a staff-level agreement with Pakistan on the second and final review of the nation’s stabilization program, which is backed by the IMF’s US$3 billion (SDR2,250 million) SBA authorized, according to the official statement released by an IMF team led by Nathan Porter.

The remaining US$1.1 billion (SDR 828 million) of SBA access will be made available following the IMF Executive Board’s approval of the deal.

It was reported shortly after the February 8 election that the newly elected PML-N-led government intended to apply for a new IMF credit package.

Pakistan is anticipated to pursue a $6–8 billion loan program from the global lender, and the IMF will be contacted right once to begin negotiations for this. The sources went on to say that the IMF would have tighter requirements this time.

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PM Shehbaz Sharif: “A plan to digitize the tax system is underway.”

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In an address to the All Pakistan Newspapers Society delegation in Islamabad today, the prime minister announced that plans were in motion to update the tax collection system.

The prime minister added that efforts are underway to broaden the revenue base and that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) is fully digitizing.

He emphasized that the Tax Excellence Awards were a recent initiative by the government to support female entrepreneurs, exporters, and engaged taxpayers.

The government’s priorities, according to the prime minister, are institutional changes, austerity, domestic and external investment, and privatization of government-owned businesses.

Praiseing the media’s contribution to public awareness-raising and good governance, he called on the sector to successfully communicate the benefits of economic stability under SIFC.

Calling fake news a major problem, he emphasized the need for cooperation to combat it. Additionally, he extended an invitation to the press to back Pakistan’s administration in its endeavors for the country’s growth and well-being.

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