Rupee sees slight gain against US dollar

Rupee's Performance Against US Dollar Since 04 March 2025

The Pakistani rupee registered marginal improvement against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Monday.

At close, the currency settled at 280.90, a gain of Re0.01 against the greenback.

During the previous week, Pakistan rupee continued its positive run against the US dollar as it gained Re0.11 or 0.04% in the inter-bank market.

The local unit closed at 280.91, against 281.02 it had closed the week earlier against the greenback, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

Globally, the US dollar firmed to a near three-month high on Monday as investors awaited the release of data this week to gauge the health of the US economy and determine whether it could alter the Federal Reserve’s hawkish stance.

The yen languished near an 8-1/2-month low, pressured by wide interest rate differentials between the US and Japan.

Trading was thinned in Asia on Monday due to a holiday in Japan, leaving currencies mostly rangebound, though most were pinned near recent lows against a strong dollar.

Last week, the Fed lowered rates by 25 basis points as expected but Chair Jerome Powell signalled that may be the central bank’s last reduction for the year, citing the risk of making additional moves without a more robust picture of the economy.

A number of Fed bank presidents on Friday also aired their discomfort with the decision to ease policy.

Traders have since pared back expectations for a cut in December and are now pricing in a roughly 68% chance of a move.

Against a basket of currencies, the dollar edged up slightly to 99.82, near its strongest level since August.

Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, held steady on Monday as the market balanced the latest OPEC+ supply increase with the group’s plans to pause output increases in the first quarter of 2026 along with fears of an oil supply glut and weak factory data in Asia.

Brent crude futures fell 24 cents, or 0.4%, to $64.53 a barrel at 10:37 am EST (1537 GMT). US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 31 cents, or 0.5%, to $60.67.

Inter-bank market rates for dollar on Monday

BID Rs 280.90

OFFER Rs 281.10

Open-market movement

In the open market, the PKR lost 1 paisa for buying and remained unchanged for selling against USD, closing at 281.43 and 281.95, respectively.

Against Euro, the PKR gained 56 paise for buying and 66 paise for selling, closing at 323.93 and 327.51, respectively.

Against UAE Dirham, the PKR gained 2 paise for buying and lost 4 paise for selling, closing at 76.70 and 77.55, respectively.

Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR gained 2 paise for buying and remained unchanged for selling, closing at 74.97 and 75.60, respectively.

Open-market rates for dollar on Monday

BID Rs 281.43

OFFER Rs 281.95