KARACHI: The rateĀ of gold hit an all-time high of Rs136,000 a tola on Friday, as the Pakistani rupee fell to a new record low of Rs191.77 per dollar.
In the local market, gold 24kt gained Rs300/tola and Rs257/10grammes, respectively, to reach Rs136,000/tola and Rs116,598/10grammes.
The previous day, the yellow metal hit a new high of Rs135,700/tola, as the local currency fell to new lows due to shrinking foreign reserves, a ballooning trade imbalance, and a delay in loan disbursement from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In the local market, silver rose Rs60/tola and Rs51.44/10grammes to Rs1,560/tola and Rs1,337.44/10grammes, respectively, while worldwide silver prices fell 76 cents to $21.04 per ounce on Thursday.
In the interbank market, the rupee fell again as the image of economic stability became more hazy, owing to postponed negotiations with the IMF over the reinstatement of the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) and increasing commodity prices in the international market.
The rupee has now dropped for the sixth time against the dollar, owing to poor economic circumstances, with the State Bank of Pakistan’s (SBP) reserves falling by $59 million to $10.5 billion in the week ending April 30. Commercial banks’ reserves have dropped to $6.0 billion.
The country’s overall liquid foreign reserves were $16.5 billion last week, down from $16.6 billion the week before.
Due to greater external debt payments and a bigger current account deficit, Pakistan’s foreign currency reserves decreased by $115 million in the week ended April 30.
In comparison to the Dubai market, gold prices in Pakistan are roughly Rs1,000 above cost.