The Pakistani Rupee (PKR) halted losses against the US Dollar (USD) during intraday trade today.
It stood its ground and closed at Rs. 224.71 after quoting an intraday low of 224.875 against the greenback before close.
The local unit was largely stable against the greenback and opened trade in the 224 range in the open market. By midday, the greenback moved higher against the rupee. After 1 PM, the local unit was stable and stayed on the 224 level against the top foreign currency the interbank close.
The rupee halted its 8-day losing streak today but the informal (black) market rate still hovers between 251-265 against the greenback. Money changers say the markets halted movements today because the greenback tumbled in global markets after the US Federal Reserve upped rates.
At home, remittances sent by overseas Pakistanis declined to a 27-month low of $2.1 billion in November as expatriates switched to unauthorized channels to send remittances to fetch a higher exchange rate. The economy was in shambles and Dar said certain speculators, gamblers, and the hundi mafia had taken the country’s currency hostage.
A few traders said the losses were halted after Ishaq Dar yesterday admitted to intervening in the market and supporting the rupee.
Internationally, the dollar fell on Thursday, after the Federal Reserve’s raising rates by half a percentage point, as speculators questioned how much the central bank would commit to slowing growth to combat inflation.
Globally, oil prices were relatively bearish. Prices rose after falling earlier in the day as the dollar seesawed, while the prospect of further interest rate hikes by central banks heightened demand concerns.
At 4:40 PM, Brent crude was up by $0.37 or 0.45 percent to reach $83.07 per barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was also green at $77.62 per barrel.
The PKR was bullish against most of the other major currencies in the interbank market today. It held out against both the UAE Dirham (AED) and the Saudi Riyal (SAR), gained 12 paisas against the Canadian Dollar (CAD), and 71 paisas against the Australian Dollar (AUD).
Conversely, it lost 37 paisas against the Pound Sterling (GBP) and 40 paisas against the Euro (EUR) in today’s interbank currency market.
