Pakistani rupee tumbles, central bank attributes decline to market forces

Pakistan's economic fundamentals have deteriorated ahead of the country's general election, with most financial analysts expecting the next govt will need to seek a post-election bailout from IMF

The Pakistani rupee dropped sharply in early trade on Monday in what appeared to be another devaluation by the central bank, two market analysts said, the fourth such intervention since early December.

The currency was trading at around 125/126 per dollar at 10:30 am local time (0530 GMT) after closing at 121.5 per dollar on Friday.

"It looks like the central bank was prepared to do this and this rate is here to stay for now," said one of the analysts, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

When contacted by Reuters, a central bank spokesman attributed the rupee's decline to market forces.