Dollar falls to five-month low against rupee

KARACHI: The formation of a new government and positive signals from the International Monetary Fund have brought down the dollar to a five-month low against the rupee, reflecting a growing confidence in the stability of the exchange rate. For the last three months the exchange rate remained stable at close to Rs 280 in the interbank market. In fact, the rupee has kept rising inch by inch against the greenback during this period. The dollar rate was Rs278.80 on Oct 20 last year, but it remained above this rate over the next five months. However, it fell to Rs278.77 on Thursday. The rupee appreciated 29 paisa on Wednesday and two paisa on Thursday. Market experts said the market sentiment picked up after the new finance minister’s statement that the IMF had set no new condition for release of the third tranche of the $3billion Stand-By Arrangement.