USD/PKR was stable at the start of what is going to be a calm holiday week. The pair held steady in a tight range below the 155 soft peg, not far from the December 6th low and five-month low of 154.30, during the past data-laden week.
US final GDP estimate, PCE inflation and the consumer sentiment index came in line with market consensus and added to the case that the Fed will probably keep the target range for the federal funds rate intact in the near term.
Yesterday, sales of new single-family houses in the US were reported to have risen 1.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 719 000 in November, recovering from a 2.7% decrease in October, as low mortgage rates continued to support local housing market.
A separate report, on the other hand, showed new orders for US manufactured durable goods unexpectedly decreased in November, down at a monthly 2.0%, as demand for transport equipment was sharply lower. Excluding transportation, new orders remained unchanged from a month ago.
US-China trade relations are still likely to be a hot topic, especially as a more difficult second phase of the deal lies ahead. In a speech at a Turning Point USA event in Florida on Saturday, US President Donald Trump said that Beijing and Washington would “very shortly” sign their “Phase One” trade agreement. The deal was announced earlier in December as part of a bid to end the over 17-month long trade friction between the two countries, which has hurt global economic growth.
Trump also criticized House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her decision to postpone sending the articles of impeachment against him to the Senate. According to Trump, Pelosi employed such a strategy as she had “no case.”
The Democratic-dominated House voted last Wednesday to impeach the President, while paving the way for a trial in the Senate. The upper chamber of Congress, which is controlled by the Republican Party, is highly unlikely to convict and remove Trump from office. The President has dismissed his impeachment as a partisan bid to revoke his election win in 2016.
PKR has managed to retain recent gains after the International Monetary Fund approved last week the second tranche of $452.4 million for Pakistan under the $6 billion Extended Fund Facility. The IMF said Pakistan’s reform program was “on track and has started to bear fruit”.
The US Dollar Index was little changed at 97.69 in late Asian trade oyn Tuesday, after reaching a two-week high of 97.82 yesterday.
From a macroeconomic perspective, no relevant reports are scheduled to be released today.
USD/PKR was up 0.16% to 154.95 in late Asian session on Tuesday.
