 |
Kathmandu Tuesday October 09, 2001 Ashwin 23, 2058.
|
Nepali rupee depreciates
Most South Asian currencies slide
Post Report
KATHMANDU, Oct 8 - Nepali rupee today depreciated by 25 paisa against the
American dollar. Such depreciation is the second time after the September 11 terror
strikes in the United States.
The official selling rate of the Nepali rupee today vis-a-vis the greenback
slid to Rs 76.85 from the Sunday’s rate of Rs 75.60. This is the third time the rupee
has plunged against the dollar in a month, depreciating by almost 1 per cent in the
period.
Experts have blamed the terror strikes in the US and the subsequent
retaliation beginning on Sunday as the main cause behind the latest slide. Uncertainty
fuelled by the latest US-led attack on Afghanistan prompted Indian businessmen scurrying
for dollars, raising its exchange rate.
And since Nepal maintains a fixed exchange rate with India, any fluctuation
in the Indian foreign exchange rate is automatically propagated to the Nepali forex
markets. Indian rupee vis-à-vis the Nepali currency is traded at Rs 1.6.
It is not only the Indian and the Nepali rupee that have slid vis-à-vis the
dollar today. Other South Asian currencies too did not fare well, except the Taiwan dollar
and the South Korean won.
AFP, an international news agency, adds that the dollar, however, weakened
against the other East Asian and European currencies. Both yen and euro fare better as
markets turned to avert risk due to the American war on terrorism.
AFP adds that the Asian currencies are unlikely to rise against the greenback
because of the region’s export-oriented economies’ heavy dependency on the US
markets.
Though depreciation of the rupee each time
increases the competitiveness of the Nepali products in the international markets, it
also, at the same time, increases the financial liabilities of importers and even the
government.
Other Stories
|
