SBP instruct banks to share five-day import payment schedule

September 24, 2021

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The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has instructed commercial banks to share the five-day future import duty schedule instead of the previous two-day Schedule as official attempts to stem the rupee’s depreciation, resulting in an appreciation of the exchange rate. pace. Lowest against the US dollar last week.

The SBP also urged banks to apply for import authorizations worth $ 500,000 per transaction, halving the initial $ 1 million maximum commission that banks can charge without central bank approval.

The two directives were adopted during a meeting of commercial banks and SBP late last week, as per a news outlet.

The measures are part of official efforts to better anticipate Pakistani imports and stem the fall of the rupee, which fell to a record low against the US dollar at 169 in the interbank market.

The rupee has lost nearly 11% since it recently peaked at 152.28 just four months ago.

The rupee drop sharply as the current account deficit rises to nearly $ 1.5 billion in August, worrying economic forecast of 5 percent growth this fiscal year. According to the Pakistani Bureau of Statistics, merchandise imports totaled nearly $ 6.6 billion in August, and many analysts believe that imports are likely to remain elevated.