SBP intervention to stabilize the rupee remained futile

Islamabad: The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Saturday said the efforts of the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to stabilize the local currency has left much to be desired.
The central bank has pumped $1.23 billion dollars in the market to stabilize the rupee but to no avail, as the local currency has depreciated by Rs12 in the current fiscal, it said.
Government should immediately ban the import of luxury items while State Bank should hike policy rate to reduce demand to stabilize the rupee and reduce the speed of hike in the prices of essential items, said Dr. Murtaza Mughal, President PEW.
Fall in the value of the Pakistani rupee, the inflation rate in the domestic consumer market will increase further and it will have a bad effect on the general public, he added.
Dr. Murtaza Mughal said that artificial development finance through loans will never result in prosperity as imports worth $6.25 billion in one month and exports of around $ two billion have resulted in a monthly trade deficit of four billion dollars which is unsustainable.
He noted that the import of mobile phones worth two billion dollars and nine hundred vehicles was a wrong decision which was based on a desire to enhance revenue.