KARACHI, April 23: The rupee fell on Wednesday to an all-time-low against the dollar, even lower than the parity when the greenback knocked down the local currency in the aftermath of the 9/11 incident.

The open market also witnessed record high value of dollar as the greenback was traded at a rate as high as Rs65.70.

The demand for the US currency was so high that it created panic in the inter-bank market and even large banks were striving to buy small number of dollars.

The dollar hit Rs64.72, a gain of 63 paisa in a single day, which reflected the trend.

The dollar boom in Pakistan is a unique phenomenon. The US currency has been losing against all major currencies for more than a year and there is a no sign for dollar’s strength in the world market.

The countries like Pakistan needs more, almost twice the amount of dollars just to pay the oil import bills. The dollar is cheaper against all major currencies and available in bulk in the world market because of record oil prices but for the weak economy of Pakistan the US currency is getting the value it does not deserve.

The Fed Reserves of United States has recently slashed the interest rates as low as 2.25 per cent, the rate Fed charges banks, which borrow from it, but it inflated the world economies with dollars.

“This was the result of the collapse of sub-prime mortgage in the United States, the impact of which was still haunting the economies in all parts of the world,” said M. Imran, a researcher and analyst.

The State Bank has been saying that Pakistan is safe from the impact of the collapse of sub-prime mortgage but the slashing of interest rates by the US Fed to support the falling stocks markets of the world and real estate business, has started penetrating into Pakistan.

This slashing of rates resulted in bulk supply of dollars, which devalued it against the major currencies and made the oil prices costlier because oil payments are bound to be in dollars.

“Pakistan has started receiving the impact of collapse of sub-prime mortgage in US, which could be in a total loss of $3 trillion.

The impact is visible as commodity prices along with oil prices have heated up in the world market and this was also because of cheaper dollar (but costlier in Pakistan) in the world market,” said an analyst.

Pakistanis are paying high wheat, rice and other commodity prices because the dollar has been gaining against the local currency. Pakistan doest not import but exports commodities like rice and sugar getting high prices but the local market prices have been linked with the international prices.

“The economies like England, Germany, France, Japan, and entire European Union are not facing intensity of higher oil and commodity prices because their currencies gained much against the dollar,” said the analyst.

Analysts said it is the dollar dominated economies, which are suffering and facing the real impact of higher oil and commodity prices.

Abid Ali, a currency dealer said the US currency would gain more in the coming weeks, which frustrated the importers and forced them to buy dollars at higher future rates.

“At first importers were of the view that the dollar would touch Rs66 by the end of this fiscal year but the panic buying has accelerated the pace of devaluation strengthening the market speculation that dollar may touch Rs66 in May,” said Ali.

The rupee has lost 4.5 per cent against the dollar since the beginning of this year.