KARACHI:

Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) increased by $66 million on a weekly basis to $17.147 billion, according to the latest data released on Friday.

The country’s total liquid foreign reserves stood at $22.646 billion. Of these, the net foreign reserves held by commercial banks amounted to $5.499 billion.

Meanwhile, the SBP injected more than Rs650 billion into the banking system on Friday through separate conventional and Shariah-compliant open market operations (OMOs).

The total realised amount was calculated at Rs487.684 billion for seven-day and 14-day tenors at a rate of return of 11.55% per annum. The central bank accepted Rs245.892 billion under the seven-day tenor against realised bids of Rs417.346 billion, while Rs241.792 billion was injected through the 14-day tenor against bids of Rs316.790 billion.

Separately, the SBP carried out a Shariah-compliant Mudarabah-based OMO injection with a 14-day tenor, injecting Rs162.914 billion into the Islamic banking system at a return of 11.59% per annum. The Shariah-compliant operation saw the central bank accept Rs165 billion in face value, translating into a realised value of Rs162.914 billion.

Furthermore, the Pakistani rupee closed at 278.50 on Friday, up Rs0.01 from Monday’s close at 278.51. In global markets, the US dollar weakened against major currencies. The euro rose 0.03% to $1.1653, while the pound was flat at $1.3445.

Meanwhile, gold prices in Pakistan edged lower on Friday despite a sharp recovery in international bullion markets, where investor sentiment turned cautious after renewed geopolitical developments surrounding a possible US-Iran agreement.

In the local market, the price of gold per tola declined by Rs500 to settle at Rs474,862, according to rates issued by the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association. Likewise, the price of 10-gram gold fell by Rs429 to Rs407,117.

In the international market, however, spot gold rose more than 2% to $4,586.29 per ounce by 1516 GMT after touching its highest level since May 15, according to Reuters. Bullion had earlier slipped to a two-month low of $4,365.76 on Thursday before rebounding amid uncertainty over US foreign policy and interest rate expectations.

Global prices found support after US President Donald Trump said he would soon make a final decision regarding a potential deal with Iran. Despite Friday’s gains, gold remained on track for a monthly decline of around 0.8% as persistent inflation concerns and expectations of elevated rates continued to pressure the precious metal.

Interactive Commodities Director Adnan Agar said the international market was trading between the low of $4,509 and high of $4,571, with prices hovering near the upper range.

He noted that expectations of a near-final US-Iran agreement had improved sentiment in the bullion market and could support further upside in gold prices over the coming months.

“Although there is strong resistance near the $4,700 level, the downside appears limited due to solid support between $4,200 and $4,400,” he said, adding that the market was likely to remain firm over the next one to two months.