Rupee gains marginally against US dollar

The Pakistani rupee registered marginal improvement against the US dollar, appreciating 0.03% in the inter-bank market on Thursday.

At close, the currency settled at 278.68, a gain of Re0.09 against the US dollar.

On Wednesday, the rupee had settled at 278.77 against the dollar, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

In recent months, the domestic currency has largely been around 277-279 as traders keep an eye on progress with the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Executive Board over a new $7-billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF).

Globally, the US dollar dipped on Thursday as traders ramped up bets for a supersized rate cut from the Federal Reserve later this month, with the yen a notable outperformer on safe-haven demand as concerns over the US economy’s growth outlook resurfaced.

Global markets have been on edge and stocks, in particular, badly bruised, after softer-than-expected US data out this week reignited concerns that the growth outlook of the world’s largest economy was less rosy than earlier thought and that the labour market could be slowing more sharply than expected.

That has led to investors fleeing risky assets in search of safety, with the yen one of the biggest beneficiaries.

Investors have in recent times placed heightened importance on any data relating to the health of the US labour market, given the Fed’s focus on protecting it.

The US dollar remained on the backfoot in early Asia trade, with the euro steady at $1.1083. Sterling was little changed at $1.3147.

Against a basket of currencies, the greenback fell marginally to 101.25.

Traders are now pricing in a 44% chance of an outsized 50-basis-point rate cut when the Fed meets later this month, up from 38% a week ago, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, firmed on Thursday, edging up from multi-month lows on a possible delay to output increases by OPEC+ producers and a decline in US inventories, though the gains were capped by persisting demand concerns.

Brent crude for November rose 42 cents, or 0.6%, to $73.12 a barrel by 0810 GMT after touching its lowest since December on Wednesday.

US West Texas Intermediate crude for October was up 37 cents, or 0.5%, at $69.57.

Further support came from discussions between the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies led by Russia, known collectively as OPEC+.

Inter-bank market rates for dollar on Thursday

BID                            Rs 278.68

OFFER                      Rs 278.88

Open-market movement

In the open market, the PKR lost 13 paise for buying and remained unchanged for selling against USD, closing at 279.33 and 280.25, respectively.

Against Euro, the PKR lost 91 paise for buying and 64 paise for selling, closing at 308.30 and 310.51, respectively.

Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 9 paise for buying and 5 paise for selling, closing at 75.98 and 76.30, respectively.

Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 3 paise for both buying and selling, closing at 74.19 and 74.55, respectively.

Open-market rates for dollar on Thursday

BID                            Rs 279.33

OFFER                      Rs 280.25