The rupee in Pakistan is continuing to weaken, causing doubts and fears over the country’s economic health and ability to pay for essential imports in the coming weeks. The exchange rate has been hit hard by a steep decline in the central bank’s foreign exchange reserves, which have shrunk to a near nine-year low of $4.34 billion. The stock market has also been affected by political uncertainty and worrying economic indicators, falling 3.5% on Tuesday. Currency experts say the rupee has been falling despite being managed by the State Bank of Pakistan, and that the shortage of dollars has caused the gap between rates in the interbank and open markets to widen, hurting the economy and diverting remittances from the legal banking channel to the grey market.