Islamabad, Aug 22: Against the US dollar, the Pakistani rupee fell by 0.01% during Thursday’s interbank market opening hours, but otherwise stayed relatively steady.
The currency was down Re0.03 against the US dollar at 10:20 a.m., trading at 278.55.
As of Wednesday, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) reports that the rupee’s value compared to the US dollar was 278.52.
The local currency has mostly hovered between 277 and 279 versus the dollar in recent months as traders watch certain encouraging signs.
Globally, the US dollar fell to levels not seen in almost a year versus the euro and sterling on Thursday, as the case for interest rate reductions was strengthened by a dovish Federal Reserve and new indications of deterioration in the US labor market.
Ahead of Friday’s highly anticipated address by Fed Chair Jerome Powell at the central bank’s annual Jackson Hole symposium and the release of weekly jobless claims data later in the day, the US dollar fell below the much watched 145-yen mark.
As of 00:15 GMT, the dollar index, which compares the value of the dollar to the euro, sterling, yen, and three other significant rival currencies, has barely moved, standing at 101.14.
Overnight, it dropped to 100.92 for the first time this year.
An array of dismal economic statistics from the two biggest economies in the world, China and the United States, was counteracted by anticipation of a rate decrease by the Federal Reserve, which caused oil prices, a crucial gauge of currency parity, to stall on Thursday.
Futures for Brent crude increased by 3 cents to $76.08 per barrel.
At 00:36 GMT, US West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped 5 cents to settle at $71.88. In the previous session, both contracts lost more than $1, or more than 1%.
