To avoid ambiguity or confusion it's best to follow established practice when specifying a time. "PT" refers not to a time, but to a time zone, and can therefore be used (implicitly and unambiguously) to refer to the current time in the Pacific time zone. If you specify a time (rather than a time zone), you should use the correct one (PDT or PST). Using PST to mean "the current time in the ...
I would argue that "the current rates" gets its point across just fine, given the assumption that most readers will tend not to think the narration prescient. When I was reading that, I didn't see a tense problem as I subconsciously assumed "current" meant 'current' within the time-frame of the topic.
How to say that something is "current" but at another point in time
'Then-current' perhaps ought to be allowed. 'Current' is obviously, after all, a deictic term – eg 'This is the Estimate for the current year, 1879-1880'. [Internet] Context informs the time-reference of the period being referred to as 'current', and 'then-current' obviously refers back to the period just mentioned in a passage.
The time-bound aspect also explains the frequent use of the word current with state. What's the current state of the project? Which is equivalent to: What's the status of the project? But not (always) equivalent to: What's the state of the project. The use of state in the last one could be interpreted both ways, depending on the context.
Is there a word that can be used to describe something that is either close in time, or currently happening? Something like "proximate" or "imminent", but without the implication that the thing ha...