The Pakistani rupee continued its marginal gain against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Tuesday.
The local unit closed the day at 276.65, a gain of Re0.01 against the greenback.
During the previous week, the Pakistani rupee extended its marginal gain against the US dollar, appreciating 0.03% in the inter-bank market. The local unit closed at 276.66 against the greenback, a gain of Re0.09 from 276.75 it had closed at a week earlier, according to State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) data.
Internationally, the US dollar found support following a bumpy few days and held firm in Tuesday’s Asia session while traders waited for US inflation data, which could push it higher if it bolsters rate hike bets.
A tumble in oil prices and gains overnight for stocks had knocked the dollar lower as investors rotated back into riskier assets.
The trade and sentiment-sensitive Australian dollar rose by nearly 1% through Monday to sit at $0.6921 early on Tuesday and the New Zealand dollar rose even further to trade at $0.5624, with both steady in morning Asia trade.
The euro jumped 0.7% overnight to $1.1220, reversing a Friday fall when strong US jobs data lifted the dollar and interest rate expectations, and putting the euro/dollar pair roughly into the middle of a range it has held for a month.
The market is long dollars, and the dollar index has gained this year as early expectations for US interest rate cuts quickly turned to bets on hikes after the US-Israeli war on Iran drove up energy prices and fuelled inflation.
A blowout October jobs report on Friday, with hiring more than twice forecasts, has markets pricing an 85% chance of a Federal Reserve rate increase next month.
Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, fell on Tuesday, adding to the previous day’s losses after US President Donald Trump downplayed the need for military action against Iran “at this point”, easing fears of sustained supply disruptions in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures declined 70 cents, or 0.75%, to $91.88 a barrel by 0246 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures fell 78 cents, or 0.90%, to $86.07 a barrel.
Both benchmarks had fallen 1% earlier in the session.
Source: brecorder
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