- Pakistani Rupee (PKR) boosted by weaker US Dollar (USD)
- Federal Reserve adopts a softer approach to inflation
- Oil drops 1% as storm misses refineries
- US consumer sentiment in focus after Conference Board consumer confidence data revealed a plunge in sentiment
The US Dollar Pakistani Rupee (USD/PKR) exchange rate is holding steady on Friday after plunging in the previous session. The pair dived 0.9% to settle at 166.47 a two-week low. At 09:00 UTC, USD/PKR trades approximately flat at 166.50.
The Federal Reserve announced a significant shift in policy on Thursday. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the central bank will now allow inflation to exceed the 2% target, for periods of time in order to make up for the periods that it runs below 2%.
This means that the Fed is essentially saying that interest rates will be kept low for a longer period of time, which is dragging on demand for the greenback and seeing other currencies rally against it.
Adding to support for the Pakistani Rupee are falling oil prices. West Texas Intermediate has dropped over 1% across the past 24 hours as hurricane Laura moved inland passing the heart of the US oil industry in Louisiana and Texas, avoiding wide-spread damage to US oil refineries.
Looking ahead attention will remain on the US economic calendar. Inflation, as measured by Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE), the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation is due along with the final reading of consumer sentiment for the month.
Broadly speaking recent US data has been mixed as the coronavirus resurgence over the summer months is starting to show through in the data. Earlier in the week another measure of US consumer confidence fell sharply to a new pandemic low. Investors will be watching closely to see whether today’s sentiment index follows suit.
Consumer sentiment is extremely important in the US whose economy is driven by consumers. A fall in morale often results in weaker consumer spending which negatively impacts the economy.
