The Pakistani rupee extended its marginal gains against the US dollar, appreciating 0.01% in the interbank market on Monday.
The local unit closed the day at 277.22, a gain of Re0.03 against the greenback.
During the previous week, the Pakistani rupee appreciated 0.03% to settle at 277.25 against the US dollar in the inter-bank market.
Globally, currency markets focused on the yen on Monday following a sharp drop last week that spurred speculation of a rate check from Tokyo, while investors pondered interest-rate outlooks after a wave of hikes from major central banks last week.
The yen was a touch firmer at 156.64 per US dollar after dropping 2% last week. Japan markets were closed for a three-day holiday, leading to low liquidity while keeping traders on alert for an official intervention to prop up the volatile currency.
The euro was little changed at $1.1482 after voting projections showed the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) took first place in state elections in northeastern Germany, in a blow to Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative party.
The dollar index, which tracks the US currency against six major peers, was steady at 100.23 after gaining more than 1% last week following the Fed’s rate hike, as the central bank signalled more increases could be coming.
Traders are currently pricing in a 55% chance of a rate hike at the Fed’s next meeting in October, up from 42.5% a week earlier, the CME FedWatch tool showed.
Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, slid towards the psychological threshold of $100 a barrel and to their lowest in 11 days on Monday as investors hoped for diplomatic progress on the Iran war due to this week’s UN meeting, and eyed a partial recovery in shipments from Saudi Arabia.
Brent crude futures and US West Texas Intermediate crude touched their lowest since September 10 earlier on Monday.
The Brent contract for November was at $101.18 a barrel at 1254 GMT, down $2.69, or 2.6%.
The WTI October contract that is expiring on Tuesday also fell $2.69, or 2.7%, to $97.61 a barrel. The November contract stood at $93.49.
Inter-bank market rates for dollar on Monday
BID Rs 277.22
OFFER Rs 277.42
Open-market movement
In the open market, the PKR lost 4.00 paisa for buying and gained 3.00 paisa for selling against USD, closing at 278.23 and 279.07, respectively.
Against Euro, the PKR gained 2.00 paisa for buying and lost 21.00 paisa for selling, closing at 318.85 and 321.93, respectively.
Against UAE Dirham, the PKR lost 3.00 paisa for buying and 2.00 paisa for selling, closing at 75.68 and 76.27, respectively.
Against Saudi Riyal, the PKR lost 4.00 paisa for buying and 5.00 paisa for selling, closing at 73.99 and 74.52, respectively.
Open-market rates for dollar on Monday
BID Rs 278.23
OFFER Rs 279.07
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