Pak rupee rises 3% against UAE dirham in a week, may rise further

Pakistani expatriates planning to send money home next week have better do it now because the rupee is expected to strengthen further in the coming weeks.

The rupee has already risen by three per cent in just one week prior to elections, hoping that Imran Khan or Nawaz Sharif’s political parties will be voted into power.

Pakistan goes to polls tomorrow (Saturday, May 11).

The rupee has strengthened by nearly three per cent from Rs27.30 against one dirham on Thursday May 2 to Dh26.50 on Thursday May 9.

The rupee had dropped substantially on fears of increasing violence during elections.

Pakistani expatriates are expecting that the upcoming elections will catapult investor-friendly parties of Imran Khan’s Tehrik-e-Insaf or Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N parties to power on May 11 which will be positive for the currency, stocks markets and the overall economy.

The rupee and stock markets rallied when Nawaz Sharif came to power in 1997 and reached record highs, said a Pakistani businessman in Dubai.

The rupee and markets could rally again following elections on May 11 as confidence on leadership and economy improves with an investor-friendly government, the businessman said.