THE RUPEE: all round gains

Firmness prevailed at currency market during the week ended on November 5, 2011 as the rupee registered gains versus both dollar and euro. In the interbank dealings, the rupee gained 49 paisa in relation to dollar for buying and selling at 86.09 and 86.13.
On open market, the rupee picked up 30 paisa in terms of dollar for buying at 86.40 and 20 paisa for selling at 86.80.
The national currency also rose steeply versus euro by Rs 3.68 for buying and selling at Rs 117.86 and Rs 118.36.
During the whole week, the rupee was almost firm versus dollar amid soft dollar demand from importers.
The major factor behind rupee's firmness was healthy remittances from abroad, In the meantime, it is likely that due to widening of current account deficit the local currency may experience pressure in the days ahead. The country's current account deficit surged provisionally ro 908 million dollars in September, compared with 201 million dollars in the previous month.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the deficit for the July-September quarter was a provisional 1.209 billion dollars, compared with 597 million dollars in the same period of last year.
INTERBANK RATES: On Monday, the rupee rose by 10 paisa in relation to dollar for buying and selling at 86.48 and 86.52.
On Tuesday, the rupee rose by 58 paisa in relation to dollar for buying at 85.90 and 52 paisa for selling at 86.00.
On Wednesday, the rupee lost 10 paisa against dollar for buying at 86.00 and 4 paisa for selling at 86.04 due to strong demand for dollars.
On Thursday, the rupee lost 14 paisa in relation to dollar for buying and selling at 86.14 and 86.18.
On Friday, the rupee gained five paisa in relation to dollar for buying and selling at 86.09 and 86.13.
OVERSEAS OUTLOOK FOR DOLLAR: In the first Asian trade, the dollar leapt against yen, hitting a three-month high after Japan stepped into the market to curb yen's rise, although traders doubted that the move would have a long-lasting impact.
The greenback, recently softened by speculation of more easing by the Federal Reserve, spiked more than 4 percent to 79.55 yen, after hitting another all-time low of 75.31 yen on EBS early in Asian trade.
Inter bank buy/sell rates for taka against dollar on Monday were 76.20-76.25 (previous 76.19-76.20) and Call Money Rates 12.00-15.00 percent (previous 7.25-14.00 percent).
China's yuan closed slightly higher after a record high mid-point fixing but hit its lower daily trade limit due to strong demand for the US currency.
In the second Asian trade, the dollar dipped versus yen, growing doubts over a plan to contain Europe's debt crisis weighed on euro.
Australian dollar fell after the country's central bank cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 4.5 percent, with interest rate futures suggesting that investors were bracing for further easing.
The dollar was trading against Indian rupee at Rs 48.69, versus Malaysian ringgit at 3.0930, and at 6.3480 in terms of Chinese yuan.
Inter bank buy/sell rates for taka against dollar were 76.24-76.27 (previous 76.20-76.25) and Call Money Rates 16.00-17.00 percent (previous 10.00-15.00 percent).
In the third Asian trade, euro wallowed near a three-week low against dollar, having suffered its worst two-day beating since May after Greece's shock call for a referendum sparked jitters about the euro zone debt deal and sent riskier assets tumbling.
As traders covered their shorts following the slide, euro was steady at $1.3695, leaving a seven-week peak of $1.4248 set last Thursday. That kept dollar index near a three-week high of 77.400, close to Tuesday's peak of 77.676.
Dollar versus Indian rupee was available at Rs 49.20, at 3.1265 in terms of Malaysian ringgit, and at 6.3542 in relation to Chinese yuan.
In the fourth Asian trade, euro edged lower, hurt by jitters over Greece's plan for a referendum on euro zone debt deal, with market players seeing the risk of more downside in the next couple of months.
The euro retreated as attention shifted back to Greece after the US Federal Reserve offered no new stimulus on Wednesday, saying that it was mulling the possibility of buying more mortgage debt to spur a struggling recovery.
The euro fell 0.3 percent to $1.3713. It dipped to as low as $1.3665 earlier, nearing a three-week low of $1.3608 hit this week. One possible support lies at $1.3566, the 61.8 percent retracement of its October rally.
The dollar was available versus Indian rupee at Rs 49.53, at 3.1535 in terms of Malaysian ringgit, and at 6.3511 in relation to Chinese yuan.
Inter bank buy/sell rates for taka against dollar were 76.2850-76.3500 (previous 76.24-76.29) and Call Money Rates: 21.00/21.00 percent (previous 10.00-19.00 percent).
In final Asian session, euro ran into stiff resistance after a rebound sparked when Greece effectively abandoned plans for a referendum on its bailout package, as market players worried that protracted political instability could bring further flare-ups in the euro zone's debt crisis.
Few market players saw an end any time soon to euro zone's debt and financial crisis, with Italian, Spanish and even French government bonds trading at hefty spreads over their German counterparts.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, facing a revolt from his own party over the plan to call a referendum, was bracing for a knife-edge confidence vote on Friday.
The yuan closed at a record high against dollar after People's Bank of China set the mid-point at a historic high in the wake of a Group of 20 meeting in France pushing for greater exchange rate flexibility. The spread was around 490 pips, between offshore yuan, at 6.3880 and spot yuan, at 6.3392. The yuan closed at 6.3514. The dollar versus Indian rupee was at Rs 49.03 and at 3.1225 in terms of Malaysian ringgit.
At the week-end, euro held steady against dollar ahead of confidence vote in Greece that could set the stage for its approval of the new EU crisis plan - or a collapse of the Greek government.
Although the day was rocky in trade, at 2200 GMT - just ahead of the vote in the Greek parliament - euro was at $1.3788.
The yen eased, with the euro buying 107.89 yen, up from 107.82, while dollar edged up to 78.23 yen from 78.07.
When it comes to weakening the yen, currency speculators are the least of Japan's problems. That's because when policymakers intervene to limit yen strength, as they did Monday, they square off against a formidable array of forces, including US monetary policy, Chinese reserve managers and global investors from Texas to Tokyo united by one desire: to sell the US dollar.
Investors and market analysts say that explains why prior efforts to weaken the yen against dollar failed and why the chances of success this time around were equally slim.
OPEN MARKET RATES: On October 31, the rupee gained 40 paisa against dollar for buying at 86.30 and 20 paisa for selling at 86.80. The rupee also picked up Rs 1.60 versus euro for buying and selling at Rs 119.94 and Rs 120.44.
On November 1, the rupee gained 30 paisa against dollar for buying at 86.00 and 40 paisa for selling at 86.40. The rupee also picked up Rs 2.24 versus euro for buying and selling at Rs 117.70 and Rs 118.20.
On November 2, the rupee retained its overnight firmness in terms of dollar for buying and selling at 86.00 and 86.40. The rupee picked up 16 paisa versus euro for buying and selling at Rs 117.54 and Rs 118.04.
On November 3, the rupee shed 20 paisa in terms of dollar for buying at 86.20 while it showed no change for selling at 86.40. The rupee picked up 42 paisa versus euro for buying and selling at Rs 117.12 and Rs 117.62.
On November 4, the rupee shed 20 paisa in terms of dollar for buying at 86.40 and 40 paisa for selling at 86.80. The rupee, gave up overnight firmness versus the euro for buying and selling at Rs 118.33 and Rs 118.83.
On November 5, the rupee maintained its overnight levels in relation to the dollar for selling and selling at 86.40 and 86.80, while it posted fresh gain of 47 paisa in terms of euro for buying and selling at Rs 117.86 and Rs 118.36.