The Pakistani rupee continued to gain against the US dollar during trading in the inter-bank market on Friday.

At close, the local currency settled at 278.70, a gain of Re0.01 against the greenback.

On Thursday, the local unit closed at 278.71.

Meanwhile, the US dollar started Friday’s Asian session on a firm footing against most major currencies after renewed hostilities broke out between the US and Iran, while the Japanese yen ​held largely steady following fresh verbal jawboning from Tokyo.

The dollar index measured against key peers was a touch firmer at 98.235.

Sterling traded at $1.3555, headed for its first weekly loss since March, as ‌investors awaited ⁠local election results that could heap further political pressure on Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The euro was steady at $1.1727, poised to end the week a touch firmer.

The Australian dollar fetched $0.72059, and the New Zealand kiwi changed hands at $0.59365, both on track to post a winning week on improved risk appetite in earlier days.

On the other hand, oil prices rose about 1% on Friday.

Brent crude futures were up $1.20, or 1.2%, at $101.26 a barrel as of 0356 GMT. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) US crude futures rose by 85 cents, or 0.9%, to $95.66 a barrel.

The benchmarks were up more than 3% at market open