Pakistani rupee’s depreciation continued on Wednesday amid widening current account deficit and persisting demand for the US dollar. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, the dollar opened at Rs178.05 in the interbank market and closed at Rs178.15 (-0.06). This is yet another lowest ever level of the Pakistani rupee against the US dollar while it is eleventh new low set during the current month. Within the open market, the rupee was traded at 179/180 per dollar. Earlier during the current month, the dollar hit then highest ever levels of Rs178.05 on December 21, Rs178.04 on December 17, Rs177.98 on December 15, Rs177.89 on December 13, Rs177.71 on December 10, Rs177.61 on December 9, Rs177.43 on December 8, Rs176.79 on December 7, Rs176.77 on December 3, and Rs176.42 on December 02. Overall, the rupee has shed Rs2.43 against the US dollar during the current month. The rupee has depreciated by Rs20.73 during the ongoing fiscal year 2021-22 and Rs18 in the current year 2021. The central bank on Monday last took more measures to enhance documentation and transparency in foreign exchange transactions through exchange companies. In order to enhance documentation and transparency and to further strengthen the foreign exchange regulatory regime, the State Bank of Pakistan has amended the regulations governing sale of foreign exchange to individuals by exchange companies. However, nothing is stopping the rupee’s devaluation. According to experts, it has been observed that before SBP’s restriction of biometric verification, around $7-8 million on daily basis were transacted through the open market, but the implementation of biometric verification has narrowed down the transaction to $2-3 million. They said the difference of amount has moved to the grey market. They said whenever the government imposes any restriction, the undocumented market becomes active which needs to be controlled to achieve desired results. Pressure has mounted on the rupee in recent weeks, with everything now hinging on whether the government strikes a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over the release of new funds. To land the deal, a mini-budget is due in the next few days, which will presumably pave the way for an IMF agreement and the release of funds. It is expected to give the rupee some respite.