Rupee opens 10 paise up at 87.83 against dollar, US trade deal talks in focus

Indian rupee

The rupee opened 10 paise up on October 23 after the Diwali break and optimism over progress in India-US trade deal talks, currency experts said.

The rupee opened at 87.83 against the US dollar after ending the previous session at 87.93.

Money markets, including currency and bond markets, were shut on October 21 and 22 on account of Diwali.

According to reports, Washington could slash the tariffs on Indian goods from over 50 percent to 15 percent, as New Delhi “moderates its oil purchases from Russia”. A report in Mint, citing sources, claimed that the two sides were approaching a trade deal.

Moneycontrol couldn’t verify the report independently.

US President Donald Trump, who on October 21, hosted Diwali celebrations at the White House, lit a traditional oil lamp and extended greetings to the people of India and Indian-Americans.

“I spoke to Prime Minister Modi today and we just have a very good relationship. He's not going to buy much oil from Russia. He wants to see that war (between Russia and Ukraine) end as much as I do. They're not going to be buying too much oil.”

According to a Reuters report, Asian currencies were mostly weaker, while the dollar index edged higher and oil prices rose — all factors unsupportive of the rupee. A positive, however, was the drop in bullion prices, with gold sliding nearly 6 percent on October 21 and 22.