Rupee registers improvement against US dollar

The Pakistani rupee registered slight improvement against the US dollar in the inter-bank market on Friday.

At close, the local currency settled at 279.86, a gain of Re0.01 against the greenback.

On Thursday, the local unit closed at 279.87.

Internationally, the US dollar was poised for its biggest weekly drop in a year after President Donald Trump’s Greenland threats and abrupt reversal unnerved investors.

The shifting geopolitical landscape has weighed on sentiment this week as Trump said he had secured US access to Greenland in a deal with NATO that came as he backed off tariff threats against Europe and ruled out taking the autonomous territory of Denmark by force.

The dollar has borne the brunt of investor angst in the currency markets as US assets were pummelled at the start of the week amid the intensifying geopolitical tensions.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency against six units, was at 98.366 after dropping 0.58% in the previous session, on course for a 1% slide, its worst weekly performance since January 2025.

The euro was steady at $1.1746, hovering near the three-week high it touched earlier this week, while sterling fetched $1.3496, near a two-week high hit in the previous session.

Oil prices, a key indicator of currency parity, rebounded on Friday after US President Donald Trump renewed threats against major Middle Eastern producer Iran, raising concerns of military action that could disrupt supplies.

Brent crude futures for March rose 29 cents, or 0.5%, to $64.35 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude also climbed 29 cents or 0.7% to $59.65 a barrel as of 0751 GMT.

Both contracts slumped about 2% on Thursday.