Rupee sees marginal improvement against US dollar

The Pakistani rupee marginally increased against the US dollar, appreciating 0.06% in the inter-bank market on Thursday.

At close, the local unit settled at 279.33, a gain of Re0.17 against the greenback, as per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

On Wednesday, the rupee regained strength to settle at 279.5 against the US dollar, according to the SBP.

In a key development, Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) Chairman Amjed Zubair Tiwana stated that the caretaker government approved the reforms but the implementation will be done by the next elected government.

Globally, the US dollar held broadly steady on Thursday as traders awaited a slew of business activity surveys to gauge the health of major economies and what that may mean for the global interest rate outlook.

Flash Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) figures across the US, the UK and the euro zone are due later in the day and will provide further clarity on their respective manufacturing and service sectors. In early Asian trade, the euro gained 0.11% to $1.0831, while sterling was flat at $1.2638.

The dollar edged higher against the yen and was back above the 150 level to last trade at 150.34 yen.

The dollar index fell 0.06% to 103.92.

Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, rose for a second day on Thursday, buoyed by expectations that demand in the US, the world’s biggest oil consumer, will improve as refineries try to return to service after outages and as the dollar weakened.

Brent crude futures rose 34 cents, or 0.4%, to $83.37 a barrel at 0740 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures climbed 37 cents, or 0.5%, to $78.28 a barrel.

Inter-bank market rates for dollar on Thursday

BID                            Rs 279.33

OFFER                      Rs 279.53

Open-market movement

In the open market, the PKR gained 21.00 paisa for buying and 28.00 paisa for selling against USD, closing at 279.59 and 282.16, respectively.

Against Euro, the PKR lost 48.00 rupee for buying and 56.00 rupee for selling, closing at 301.60 and 304.58, respectively.

Against UAE Dirham, the PKR gained 16.00 paisa for buying and 15.00 paisa for selling, closing at 75.97 and 76.73, respectively.

Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR gained 11.00 paisa for buying and 9.00 paisa for selling, closing at 74.24 and 74.95, respectively.

Open-market rates for dollar on Thursday

BID                            Rs 279.59

OFFER                      Rs 282.16