Just went down a rabbit hole looking at Pakistan's currency history and honestly, it's pretty wild. Back in 1947 when Pakistan became independent, 1 USD was just 3.31 PKR. The rupee stayed rock solid at that rate for like 8 years straight - can you imagine? But then things started moving. By the mid-50s it had weakened to 3.91, then 4.76, and basically stayed there for another decade or so.

The real deterioration kicked in during the 70s and 80s. By 1972 it jumped to 11 PKR per dollar, and through the rest of that decade it hovered around 10. Then the 90s hit and the dollar rate in Pakistan started accelerating - went from around 20 in 1989 to over 50 by the end of the decade. That's a massive shift in just 10 years.

The 2000s were rough too. Started at 51.90 and by 2008 it was already at 81. Then 2018 came and we're looking at 139 PKR per dollar. Fast forward to 2024 and it's sitting around 277. So basically, what cost 1 dollar in 1947 now costs nearly 280 rupees. The currency has lost like 98% of its value over 77 years. When you look at the dollar rate in pakistan from 1947 to 2018 alone, you're already seeing a depreciation from 3.31 to 139 - that's a 42x difference. Puts into perspective why inflation and currency devaluation hit so hard in emerging markets.