Business
Dollar wobbles, oil’s dash to $100 chills sentiment, Yen stands big
The Japanese yen was pinned near its best level since February on Wednesday, leaving the dollar on the defensive as traders grappled with oil prices heading toward $100 a barrel amid an expanding war in the Middle East.
Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen attacked several Saudi cities, drawing a U.S. partner further into a battle that has dragged on for more than six months, as U.S. forces struck multiple Iranian oil tankers and Iran threatened a U.S. station in Jordan.
Brent crude futures rose by more than 1.48% to $99.37 a barrel, weighing on global markets ahead of a U.S. inflation data on Friday that will set the stage for central bank meetings next week in the U.S. and Japan.
The currency market nudged the dollar down a touch in response, though some analysts said that was due to the yen’s swift rally over the past week.
The euro held constant at $1.1631 while the pound was last bought at $1.3546. The dollar index, measuring the U.S. currency against a basket of six major rivals, was at 98.15, near its lowest level in nearly two weeks.
OCBC strategists said the current increase keeps Fed policy implications from higher energy prices in focus, especially after last week’s robust U.S. payrolls report reignited expectations of another rate hike. “Higher oil and rates should help limit USD fall for now but we anticipate a more dramatic move will await confirmation from the impending inflation data,” they said in a note.
The yen has been under focus after its 4% surge in September that has altered the math for the popular carry trade in which investors borrow in yen at a low cost and invest in other currencies and assets yielding better interest.
The yen was stronger at 153.65 per dollar, close to the seven-month peak of 152.89 struck on Tuesday. The surge has been broad-based with the Japanese currency strengthening against the euro and sterling as well as favorite carry-trade targets such as the Mexican peso and Turkish lira.
The increase has been fueled by expectations of quicker tightening by the Bank of Japan and the return of offshore cash by Japanese investors and pressure from Washington for a higher yen.
Traders broadly expect the BOJ to hike rates by 25 basis points at its September 17-18 meeting but the rise will rest on if Governor Kazuo Ueda delivers hawkish comments and the wild card will be the Federal Reserve.Aninda Mitra, head of Asia macro and investment strategy at BNY Investments, stated “Much will depend on how the market prices in the Fed’s path of interest rates too.We estimate the Yen’s “fair value” to be in the 140’s and a further move to that area should not be a total surprise following what has clearly been an overshoot to the side of excessive Yen weakness.”
The Australian dollar gained 0.12% to $0.7225, just below a four-month high set in the previous session, in Pacific trade. The New Zealand dollar was up 0.16% at $0.5862.
Business
Petrol price cut by Rs1.49, diesel drops Rs2.73 per litre
The recent revision in fuel-price has again lowered petrol and diesel costs.
Petrol has been cheaper by Rs1.49 per liter and diesel by a higher Rs2.73.
The new rates will come into effect from 30 September 2026.
Under the latest revision, the price of petrol will be Rs387.54 per liter and diesel would be Rs402.24 per liter for motorists starting September 30.
The latest change is another straight fall in the price of petrol.
Petrol has come down by Rs3.76 per liter and diesel by Rs6.29 per liter in the last two revisions.
Business
Dollar eyes big September jump, largely at euro’s expense
The dollar was near this year’s high against the euro and heading for its biggest monthly gain against it in 14 months on Wednesday, thanks to US growth and rising US interest rates relative to oil and debt worries swirling in Europe.
The euro dropped to an 11-month low of $1.1312 on Tuesday and was last quoted at $1.1339 in Asia on Wednesday. The euro is also challenging support at about 178 yen.
The dollar is up almost 2.5% against the euro in September and is on track for a third consecutive quarterly gain.
The Aussie dollar fell below 70 cents for the first time since early August as the stronger greenback dragged it down to a nine-week low of $0.6959 after inflation data came in a tad below predictions.”The US economy is running hot, Europe is losing the global AI race and energy supplies and French politics remain big concerns for the euro,” said Brent Donnelly, president of foreign exchange trading at analytics firm Spectra Markets.
European benchmark gas prices jumped earlier this month to their highest since 2022.
French markets are being squeezed by debt and political paralysis ahead of next year’s presidential election with the margin with German rates blowing out above 115 basis points to its largest since 2012.
Options prices have just shifted dramatically to suggest investors prefer buying protection from potential euro declines – though Donnelly argues the dollar probably needs strong US data to make advances from here.
The dollar also struck a 16-1/2-month high against the Swiss franc of 0.8358 francs on Tuesday. The franc has been hit in part because investors have been searching for low-yielding alternatives to yen to sell so they can get carry elsewhere.
The yen has fallen out of favor as a short against the dollar, with US-Japan currency buying in July and August, then warnings not to test their resolve and a rise in the pace of Japanese rate hikes.
The dollar has lost 2% against the yen so far this month and almost 3.8% for the quarter to date, hitting a nearly two-week low of 156.38 in Asia trade.
The Fed’s favored inflation gage, US core PCE, is coming later on Wednesday but the market is looking forward Friday’s US jobs data which if strong might bolster predictions that US interest rates are headed higher.
Some of those hopes got knocked overnight when prominent New York Fed President John Williams indicated there is “no need for urgency” in raising rates. The yield on the two-year Treasury declined by 3.5 basis points and the odds in Fed funds futures of a rate hike next month fell to 50% from 71%.
The New Zealand dollar on Tuesday hit its lowest since last November and was last at $0.5645.
Sterling dropped to a three-month low on Tuesday and last traded near that level at $1.3230. The yuan was headed for a seventh quarterly increase in a row against the dollar in its last session before China’s Oct. 1-7 holidays.
Business
Oil prices rise for second session on continued Middle East supply concern
Oil prices increased for a second straight session on Tuesday as ongoing fears of Middle East supply disruption due to US-Iran tensions overshadowed signals of recovering crude supplies from the region.
Brent crude futures were up $1.49, or 1.4%, at $106.77 a barrel by 0326 GMT while US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $93.94, up $1.34, or 1.5%. Both benchmarks finished the last session with gains of around $1 a barrel.Higher volumes of oil exports are increasingly visible exiting the Gulf, but much of the growth still depends on workarounds such as ship-to-ship transfers. “The methods are less efficient, more costly than normal operations, which is why crude prices remain elevated,” KCM Trade chief analyst Tim Waterer said.
Crude exports from major Middle Eastern producers jumped to 12.8 million barrels a day in September, the highest since February, aided by higher shipments from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, preliminary statistics from data source Kpler showed on Monday.
U.S. and Iranian officials separately spoke to mediators in a renewed effort to end seven months of hostilities, officials from both nations said. Further talks are widely expected to focus on a revised version of a seven-day proposal Iran submitted last week on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly.“The dominant risk remains the US-Iran standoff and its implications for energy prices and inflation expectations,” UOB analysts said in a client note.Iranian officials have allegedly been pessimistic about striking a compromise before the Strait of Hormuz crisis worsens further, keeping oil supply uncertainties elevated.”
The conflict that started in late February with US and Israeli strikes on Iran has turned the spotlight onto the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping path for oil and gas supplies that has been thrown into chaos and shaken up energy markets.
Meanwhile, the US is weighing regulatory relief to enable wider sales of red-dyed diesel to help decrease prices, a move that might allow some consumers to escape federal fuel tax, people familiar with discussions told Reuters. The proposal came after days of negotiations as a key alternative to a ban on fuel exports.
-
Latest News5 months agoICC board meeting in India: Mohsin Naqvi gets invitation
-
Latest News2 months ago23 people have died during the monsoon as rain-related incidents plague Punjab and KP.
-
Latest News2 months ago‘Self-Reliance in Digital ID’: NADRA launches locally produced QR code-based National Identity Card
-
Business2 months agoGovt dedicated to resolving Balochistan issues: Dar
-
Latest News2 months agoPakistan making rapid progress in robotics, AI: Shaza Fatima
-
Latest News1 month agoTurkish FM, Dar discuss regional trends, bilateral connections
-
Latest News2 months agoAfter a divorce, LHC decides that women who have been harmed by their spouses get their dower.
-
Entertainment4 months agoInterim bail given to YouTuber Rajab Butt in gambling app marketing case
