Rupee makes minor gain against US dollar, settles at 283.92

(MANEND NEWS): As per the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the rupee settled at 283.92, a gain of Re0.11.

A day earlier, the rupee had settled at 284.03 against the dollar in the inter-bank market, a decline of Re2.32 or 0.82%.

In a key development, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Resident Representative Esther Ruiz Perez said Pakistan authorities did not consult with staff ahead of announcing their recent fuel subsidy proposal.

“The IMF is seeking greater details on the scheme in terms of its operation, cost, targeting, protections against fraud and abuse, and offsetting measures, and will carefully discuss these elements with the authorities,” Ruiz told Business Recorder via message early Tuesday morning.

The development potentially means the staff-level agreement could still take some time as Islamabad remains in talks with the IMF.

Internationally, the dollar regained some ground on Tuesday but was pinned near a five-week low as traders tiptoed back into riskier assets after UBS’ state-backed takeover of Credit Suisse allayed some fears of a widespread, systemic banking crisis.

Market sentiment remained fragile, however, as investors struggled to determine the scale of the ramifications from a sector hit that began with Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse, putting a cap on risk appetite and giving some support to the safe haven dollar.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against abasket of currencies, fell 0.04% to 103.30.

Oil prices, a key indicator, drifted lower on Tuesday as more than a week of banking turmoil kept weighing on market confidence.