Image for representational purpose only. , Photo credit: The Hindu
The rupee strengthened by 3 paise to close at 82.37 (provisional) against the US dollar on March 27, as a positive trend in domestic equities and a weaker dollar supported investor sentiment.
At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 82.36 against the American currency and finally closed at 82.37 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a gain of 3 paise over its previous close of 82.40.
The rupee touched a high of 82.27 and a low of 82.42 against the dollar during the trading session.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.02% to 103.09.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.68% to $75.50 a barrel.
According to Anuj Chowdhary, research analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, the Indian rupee appreciated amid positive domestic markets and a soft dollar. However, positive crude oil prices limited the sharp gains.
“We expect the Indian Rupee to trade with a slight downside bias towards the end of the month on dollar demand from importers and sustained FII outflows. Concerns over credit crunch in US and Europe due to banking crisis may lead to risk-off sentiments Yes,” Mr. Chowdhary. Said.
Mr. Chowdhary further said that renewed geopolitical tensions over Russia’s nuclear threat could lead to safe-haven demand for the dollar.
“We expect USD/INR spot price to trade in the range of ₹81.80 to ₹82.80 in the near term,” said Mr. Chowdhary.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 126.76 points or 0.22% to close at 57,653.86, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 40.65 points or 0.24% to 16,985.70.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market on Friday as they sold shares worth Rs 1,720.44 crore, according to exchange data.
Meanwhile, India’s forex kitty increased by $12.798 billion to $572.801 billion in the week ended March 17.
In the previous week under review, the reserves fell by $2.39 billion to a three-month low of $560.003 billion.