After Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif claimed that the IMF was giving Pakistan "a terrible time" and that the lender wanted the government to take more economic action, the rupee on Friday fell to a record low against the dollar.

At the apex committee meeting in Peshawar, the prime minister remarked, "As we speak, an IMF group is in Islamabad [having parleys on loan plan] and giving a very terrible time to the finance minister and his colleagues. The economic challenges are unbelievable."

According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee plummeted to Rs276.58 at day's end after losing Rs5.22 or 1.89% of its value. The local currency closed on the open market at 283 in the meanwhile.

According to the analyst, the market is reacting to news stories about the demands the IMF is making of the government.

Agar cautioned that the rupee will continue to lose value if the government is unable to get a staff-level agreement with the Fund.

According to Agar, if the IMF deal is completed on time, it will increase, but not significantly.

The government and exchange corporations lifted the dollar cap, which was put in place to stabilise the value of the dollar, in an effort to stop the illicit market and comply with IMF demands.

But that had little impact on the local currency because investors are still concerned due to an increase in terrorism and a reduction in the State Bank of Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves, which the State Bank of Pakistan holds.

Investors' lack of faith in the government is due, he said, to our reserves being at their lowest point in nine years and the rise of terrorism, which is not just happening in Peshawar.

The general secretary of ECAP noted that the nation's problems were being made worse by the current political unrest, as opponents are being detained and arrested almost every day.

The government has closed the letters of credit (LCs) for imports, so while the black market gap has been filled to some level, it will still exist.

The illicit market is still functioning because "the government has urged the importers to arrange currency on their own." If this continues, the margin may potentially widen, he said.