Rupee closes flat against US dollar

Rupee ended at 82.03 a dollar, up 0.01 percent from its previous close of 82.04.

The Indian rupee closed flat against the US dollar despite gains in local equities and Asian currencies markets. The home currency ended at 82.03 a dollar, up 0.01 percent from its previous close of 82.04.

India's current account deficit in the March quarter stood at $1.3 billion against a surplus expected by economists. According to a Bloomberg poll, a current account surplus of $3 billion was expected in the March quarter.

Meanwhile, in Asia, Yuan extended its fall and hit a seven-month low. The People's Bank of China had sought to curb onshore currency weakness by setting its so-called fixing at the largest premium to estimates this year, Bloomberg reported.

Traders are awaiting clues on the interest rate outlook and are wary of risks about China's shaky economic recovery and developments in Russia after an aborted mutiny.

"The Bank of China’s Yuan intervention could keep the cap on falling EM currencies and hence rupee too could remain subdued in a narrow range of 81.80-82.20 levels," said CR Forex in its note.

Among Asian currencies, the Philippines' peso rose 0.68 percent, South Korean won gained 0.43 percent, China Renminbi 0.30 percent, Singapore dollar 0.27 percent and Indonesian rupiah 0.2 percent. Among losers, Japanese yen fell 0.22 percent while Thai Baht was down 0.14 percent.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 102.585, down 0.11 percent from its previous close of 102.69.

(With inputs from Reuters and Bloomberg)