Business

Gold rates in Pakistan make minor gains

Published

1 year ago

Farwa

Gold price in Pakistan settles at Rs221,500 per tola.
Price of silver remains unchanged in local market.
Yellow metal falls by $4 in the international market.

KARACHI: Gold rates in Pakistan made minor gains on Friday despite international prices witnessing a decline.

According to data issued by the All-Pakistan Sarafa Gems and Jewellers Association (APSGJA), the price of gold (24 carats) appreciated by Rs1,300 per tola and Rs1,115 per 10 grams to settle at Rs221,500 and Rs188,786, respectively.

Meanwhile, the price of the yellow metal fell by $4 to settle at $1,932 per ounce in the international market today.

Gold was on track for its biggest weekly decline in six as data projecting continued strength in the US labour market firmed bets for US interest rates remaining elevated and boosted Treasury yields and the dollar.

“The market is slowly accepting the fact that maybe rates will stay higher for longer,” reflected in Treasury yields rising this week with a downward impact on gold, said Harshal Barot, a senior consultant at Metals Focus.

“The dollar has strengthened even after the US rating downgrade, so that is one potential supporting factor that hasn’t played out.”

Gold prices have declined more than 1.4% so far this week, having slipped to July 11 lows on Thursday as 10-year US Treasury yields climbed to their highest since November after strong US jobs data.

Rising yields dampen the appeal of non-interest-bearing gold.

Meanwhile, the gold rate has been volatile in Pakistan recently amid continued political and economic uncertainty, and high inflation. People prefer to buy gold in such times as a safe investment and a hedge.

Data shared by the association showed the price of silver prices remained unchanged to settle at Rs2,750 per tola and Rs2,357.68 per 10 grams, respectively.

Business

Robust activity lets PSX climb above 115,000 level again.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

On Friday, the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) resumed its upward trend, crossing 115,000 points once more.

The PSX had strong action in the morning session, as the KSE-100 index increased by 1,000 points to 115,138.

The notoriously volatile PSX closed Thursday at 114,037 points, up 594 points.

DOLLAR DEPRECIES

Meanwhile, in the interbank market this morning, the US dollar fell 7 paisas to Rs278.65 against the Pakistani rupee.

Business

SBP will announce monetary policy on January 27.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) will release its monetary policy on Monday.

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the SBP will convene on the first day of the following week to make decisions on monetary policy.

The Monetary Policy decision will be announced by Governor SBP Jameel Ahmad at a news conference on the same day after the MPC meeting, according to an official release.

In December, the central bank reduced policy rates by 200 basis points (bps) to 13 percent.

“In November 2024, headline inflation fell to 4.9 percent year on year, meeting the MPC’s estimates. This decrease was mostly caused by the ongoing decline in food inflation and the phasing out of the impact of the gas tariff increase in November 2023,” SBP stated in an official release.

“However, the Committee noted that core inflation, at 9.7 percent, is proving to be sticky, while consumer and business inflation expectations remain volatile.” To that end, the Committee restated its previous assessment that inflation may remain volatile in the short term before stabilizing within the target range.

“At the same time, growth prospects have slightly improved, as evidenced by a recent increase in high-frequency indicators of economic activity.” Overall, the Committee concluded that its approach of gradual policy rate decreases is keeping inflationary and external account pressures under control while promoting long-term economic growth.

Business

Finance Minister Meets With World Leaders at World Economic Forum in Davos

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

During his attendance at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has met with officials of organisations and leaders of many nations.
Bangladesh’s Chief Advisor, Muhammad Younas, met with Mohammad Aurangzeb.
On the fringes of the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting 2025 Opening Banquet, there was an informal meeting.
Additionally, the Finance Minister met with Anwar Ibrahim, the Prime Minister of Malaysia.
Both leaders discussed economic cooperation and bilateral ties.
Muhammad Aurangzeb also had a meeting with Dp World’s Rizwan Soomro and Yuvraj Narayan.
They talked about how to strengthen Pakistan’s logistics and infrastructure systems to support trade.
“The Pakistani government is committed to advancing joint projects and values partnerships in both business-to-business and business-to-government cooperation,” the finance minister added.