State Bank of Pakistan
Pakistani Central Bank Interest Rate Hike
October 26, 2026
The State Bank of Pakistan’s policy interest rate was raised 50 basis points to 12.0% by a vote of 9-1. This was the first increase since a 100 basis point increase back in April, which in turn represented a trend reversal from a previous rate cutting cycle that began in June 2024 at 22% and […] More
Oil Prices Lower as Last October Week Kicks Off and Dollar Up Especially Against Brazilian Real
October 26, 2026
(116) Oil prices remain a key driver of economic life around the world. At $115.2 and $101.9 per barrel, Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude costs remain above the $100/barrel threshold, but they are 1.3% and 2.0% below pre-weekend closing levels amid reports of some back-channel diplomatic efforts and news of near-normal traffic through the […] More
Oil Price Stranglehold on Financial Markets Tightens Further
September 14, 2026
(122) The Strait of Hormuz remains all but shut, and now Saudi Arabia’s East-West oil pipeline has been forced to close as well. The Brent and West Texas Intermediate prices of crude oil both jumped slightly more than 4.0% to start this week, increasing the perceived odds that central banks including the Federal Reserve, which […] More
Oil Price Drop to the Rescue
July 27, 2026
(129) As is often the case, President Trump chose a weekend when news cycles are less responsive for another twist in his Iran war strategy. U.S. air strikes were suspended, and Iran in kind did the same in its campaign against U.S. military targets in the region. In knee-jerk fashion, oil prices plunged 6.8% to […] More
State Bank of Pakistan’s Interest Rate Hike Catches Pundits by Surprise
April 27, 2026
There’s been an unexpected decision by officials at the State Bank of Pakistan to crank up their interest rate to 11.5% from 10.5%. Pakistan’s central bank rate crested at 22.0% for a whole year until June 2024 and as CPI inflation imploded from a 38.0% in May 2023 all the way to just 0.3% in […] More
Fresh Peace Proposal From Iran as Traffic Through the Straight of Hormuz Remains Blocked
April 27, 2026
(142) The attention of financial markets quickly moved past the the failed politically motivated assassination attempt at the U.S. press corps gala on Saturday night and is focused squarely back on the Middle East war, now in its ninth week. The fresh development in that regard is a report that Iran is offering a new […] More
Surging Oil Price Takes Command of Everything Else
March 9, 2026
(149) At today’s high, the $119.48 peak in West Texas Intermediate oil had leaped by a total 117% in less than three months and was 84% above its closing level on February 27 just before the start of Operation Epic Fury. The price has settled back to $102.4 per barrel currently, still 37% higher than […] More
Attention Shared by Central Bank Decisions & Year-end Data Deluge
December 17, 2025
The dollar rose overnight, led by gains of 0.5% against yen and sterling. The U.S. currency also appreciated 0.2% against the Australian currency and Mexican peso and 0.1% relative to the Swiss franc, euro, kiwi and won. Gold is 0.7% stronger, whereas Bitcoin has softened 0.4%. The price of gold bounced up 1.5%. Ten-year sovereign […] More
Business World Plows On In Spite of Dystopic Newsfeed
December 15, 2025
(161) The coming week will be the last one of 2025 in which financial markets are not heavily affected by year-end factors. A heavy menu of economic data releases, including belated U.S. ones due to the government shutdown. Oftentimes particularly in the early years of the floating exchange rate era, the dollar exhibited a downward […] More
Hopes Up that China-U.S. Truce on Trade Will Extend Beyond November 1st
October 27, 2025
(168) Reports have been optimistic out of Asia where U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent and his Chinese counterparts have been holding talks that will lead to a broader truce to be signed at the end of this week by Presidents Trump and Xi that would avoid a sharply escalated trade war. One hopeful indication has been […] More
