Rupee opens 3 paise up on higher Asian currencies

Indian rupee

Indian rupee opened 3 paise up on November 21 due to uptick in the Asian currencies and support from easing U.S. Treasury yields, currency experts said.

The local currency opened at 88.6787 against the US dollar, as compared to 88.7075 against the greenback at previous close.

Further, Reserve Bank of India's Governor Sanjay Malhotra reiterated that the central bank does not target any specific level for the rupee and highlighted the strength of India’s foreign exchange buffers.

Malhotra stressed that the recent depreciation has been trade-related, largely tied to tariff issues with the US, and importantly, expressed confidence that a good trade deal will close.

"These reassuring comments come on top of similar optimistic signals from Indian government officials in recent days — and even positive remarks from President Donald Trump. Together, they have strengthened the belief that a trade agreement may be nearing, giving the rupee something solid to hold on to, even as global forces pull in the opposite direction," said Amit Pabari, managing director at CR Forex Advisors.

According to the Bloomberg data, Asian currencies remained up with Malaysian Ringgit appreciating 0.30 percent compared to November 20, Philippine Peso was up 0.18 percent, Indonesian Rupiah was up by 0.10 percent, South Korean Won was up by 0.09 percent, Japanese Yen was up by 0.06 percent, and Chinese Renminbi 0.04 percent.

"Today also the rupee looks to be in a small range of 88.60 to 88.80 with RBI supporting it beyond 88.75 which gives comfort for exporters to sell at that level," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury at Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.