Govt raises Rs498b via T-bills as yields rise

The Express Tribune reported that the State Bank of Pakistan raised Rs498 billion through its Market Treasury Bills auction on Wednesday, short of the Rs500 billion target, as cut-off yields climbed across every tenor. One-month bills drew Rs52 billion at 11.47%, up 12 basis points, while three-month paper attracted Rs340 billion at 11.65%, with the yield 13 basis points higher. Six-month bills fetched Rs44 billion at 11.80%, and 12-month paper Rs62 billion at 11.99%, with total bids reaching about Rs2.1 trillion.

The rupee ended Wednesday at 277.60 per US dollar in the interbank market, a Rs0.01 gain from Tuesday's 277.61 close. Local gold prices fell even as international rates jumped more than 3%, reaching their loftiest point in two and a half months, after a surprise liquidity move by the US Treasury. Locally, the per-tola gold price dropped by Rs3,700 to Rs458,236, while 10-gram gold stood at Rs392,863 after falling Rs3,172, according to the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association.

Spot gold gained 3.7% to $4,496.39 an ounce by 12:09 pm EDT, after briefly touching $4,498.69, its highest since June 4. Reuters reported that US gold futures rose 3% to $4,555.10, while spot gold also cleared its 100-day moving average, put at roughly $4,381. Market participants linked the jump to an unexpected US Treasury move that doubled its bond buyback capacity from $20 billion to $40 billion.