ISLAMABAD (PEN) : The Pakistani rupee remained largely stable against the US dollar, depreciating 0.01% during the opening hours of trading in the inter-bank market on Thursday.
At 10:05am, the currency was hovering at 278.53, a loss of Re0.03 against the greenback.
On Wednesday, the currency had settled at 278.50 against the US dollar.
In recent weeks, the domestic currency has largely been around 277-279 against the dollar.
Globally, the yen rose to its strongest level against the US dollar in 2-1/2 months on Thursday and scaled multi-month highs against other currencies ahead of next week’s Bank of Japan (BOJ) meeting.
Against the dollar, the yen surged more than 1% to peak at 152.23, a level not seen since early May.
US business activity climbed to a 27-month high in July, but firms appeared to have some difficulty sustaining higher prices for their goods and services amid resistance from consumers.
Traders also have their eye on second-quarter U.S. growth figures later on Thursday, though the outcome is unlikely to significantly alter bets for Federal Reserve rate cuts this year, with a September move already fully priced in.
Against a basket of currencies, the dollar fell more than 0.1% to 104.21, though that was largely on the back of the yen’s sharp rise.
Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, eased on Thursday as concerns over weak demand in China, the world’s largest crude importer, and expectations of a nearing ceasefire deal in the Middle East overcame gains in the previous session after draws in U.S. inventories.
Brent crude futures for September fell 63 cents, or 0.8%, to $81.08 a barrel by 0355 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude for September slid 63 cents, or 0.8%, to $76.96 per barrel.
This is an intra-day update
