3rd straight gain: rupee settles at 286.73 against US dollar

The Pakistani rupee maintained its upward trajectory for the third successive session against the US dollar, appreciating 0.09% in the inter-bank market on Thursday.

At close, the currency settled at 286.73, an improvement of Re0.25, as per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

On Wednesday, the rupee saw a marginal gain in the inter-bank market, appreciating 0.08% to settle at 286.98.

In a key development, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Ishaq Dar met with US Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome on Wednesday and discussed with him the Pak-US economic ties besides the International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programme.

Earlier, Islamabad was severely criticised by the IMF with Esther Perez Ruiz, the lender’s Resident Representative for Pakistan, expressing dissatisfaction with the budget proposals announced by Dar for fiscal year 2023-24, calling them a missed opportunity to broaden the tax base while criticising the new amnesty scheme that “creates a damaging precedent”.

Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday said with the help of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), the immediate task was to increase the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the country up to $5 billion.

Internationally, the US dollar languished near a one-month low against a basket of currencies on Thursday, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stuck to his usual messaging at his semi-annual testimony, offering little room for surprise.

In remarks to lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Powell said further U.S. rate increases are “a pretty good guess” of where the Fed is heading if the economy continues in its current direction. Those comments were in line with what the central bank said at its policy meeting last week.

That sent the greenback down nearly 0.5% against a basket of six major peers in the previous session.

Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, dipped slightly on Thursday, with trader expectations of further interest rate hikes countered by potentially bullish U.S. oil inventory data after preliminary figures showed a fall in stocks.

Inter-bank market rates for dollar on Thursday

BID Rs 286.60

OFFER Rs 286.80

Open-market movement

In the open market, the PKR remained unchanged for both buying and selling against USD, closing at 289.00 and 292.00, respectively.

Against Euro, the PKR lost 3 rupees for both buying and selling, closing at 315.00 and 318.00 respectively.

Against UAE Dirham, the PKR gained 30 paisa for buying and 20 paisa for selling, closing at 79.50 and 80.30, respectively.

Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR gained 25 paisa for both buying and selling, closing at 76.00 and 76.75, respectively.

Open-market rates for dollar on Thursday

BID Rs 289.00

OFFER Rs 292.00