The Pakistani rupee registered a modest gain against the US dollar during early trading hours on Monday, appreciating by 0.09% in the inter-bank market.
At 9:50am, the local currency was recorded at Rs280.76, up by Re0.26 against the greenback.
During the previous week, the rupee had posted a mild gain of Re0.08 or 0.03%, closing at Rs281.02 compared to Rs281.10 the week earlier, according to data released by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
Globally, the US dollar rose to a more than two-week high against the Japanese yen on Monday, marking a strong start to a week packed with global trade negotiations and central bank meetings.
US President Donald Trump is visiting Japan from Monday, with plans to meet the nation’s new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, on Tuesday. Later in the week, Trump is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping to finalise the framework of a trade deal that officials from both sides reached on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the US Federal Reserve is widely expected to cut its policy interest rate following moderate inflation data released on Friday.
The dollar strengthened 0.2% to 153.12 yen, marking its highest level since October 10, while the dollar index — measuring the greenback against a basket of major peers — held steady at 98.94.
In commodities, oil prices inched higher in early Asian trade on Monday after progress in US-China trade talks eased global economic concerns. Brent crude futures rose 46 cents, or 0.7%, to $66.40 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 46 cents, or 0.75%, to $61.96.
Both benchmarks had posted strong gains last week amid sanctions on Russia by the US and European Union.
