The Pakistani rupee strengthened somewhat against the US dollar on Friday, gaining 0.23% during the first hours of intraday trading.
At 10:20 a.m., the rupee was trading at 284.50, up Re0.65 in the interbank market.
The rupee fell against the US dollar for the fifth consecutive session on Thursday, falling 0.47% to close at 285.15 in the interbank market.
Foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) increased by $4.2 billion, reaching over $8.73 billion as of July 14, according to figures released on Thursday.
“During the week ended July 14, 2023, the SBP received $2.0 billion from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, $1.2 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and $1.0 billion from the United Arab Emirates (UAE),” according to a statement from the SBP.
The country’s total liquid foreign reserves were $14.07 billion.
Globally, the US dollar remained steady on Friday as statistics indicated US employment market resiliency, which could prompt the Federal Reserve to maintain interest rates higher for longer, while the yen rose after Japan’s core consumer inflation accelerated in June.
Central bank meetings in Europe, Japan, and the United States are scheduled for next week, with investors sifting through data to better predict monetary policy directions.
The dollar increased 0.03% against a basket of currencies to 100.78, following a 0.5% gain. The index is on track to gain 1% this week.
Oil prices, a crucial measure of currency parity, were little changed on Friday and were expected to end the week flat after three weeks of increases, as markets weighed reduced US oil inventories and tapered interest rate hikes against weak Chinese economic data that could limit demand.
