The rupee appreciated 9 paise to 82.73 against the US dollar in early trade on January 5, supported by easing crude oil prices and a firming trend in domestic equities. , Photo credit: SR Raghunathan
The rupee appreciated 9 paise to 82.73 against the US dollar in early trade on January 5, supported by easing crude oil prices and a firming trend in domestic equities.
Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows weighed on investor sentiment and restricted the appreciation bias.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.75 against the dollar, then recovered to 82.73, registering a rise of 9 paise from its previous close.
On Wednesday, the rupee recovered from its all-time low to close at 82.82 against the dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.04% to 104.21.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.99% to $78.61 a barrel.
Despite weakening of the dollar elsewhere, the rupee did not strengthen on sustained bids against the dollar throughout the session. The IFA Global Research Academy said in a research note that the local unit has been limited of late.
It added, “We expect rupee to trade in the range of 82.60-82.90 with sideways price action.”
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 162.86 points or 0.27% higher at 60,820.31. The broader NSE Nifty rose 60.20 points, or 0.33%, to 18,103.15.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday as they sold shares worth Rs 2,620.89 crore, according to exchange data.