Rupee rises 2 paise to settle at 83.32 against US dollar

Traders may take cues from GDP data from the US. Investors may also take cues from India’s GDP and fiscal deficit data towards the end of the month.

The rupee sustained its gaining momentum for the second straight session and settled 2 paise higher at 83.32 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday boosted by robust buying in equity markets and inflow of foreign funds.

A weak American currency against major rivals supported the domestic unit while an upward movement in crude oil prices ahead of the crucial meeting of oil-producing countries capped the gain in the rupee, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened stronger at 83.30 against the dollar and traded between the peak of 83.28 and the lowest level of 83.33 intra-day. It finally settled at 83.32 (provisional) against the greenback, up 2 paise over its previous close.

On Tuesday, the rupee rebounded from record low levels and settled 6 paise higher at 83.34 against the US dollar. Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, said Indian rupee appreciated on positive domestic markets and foreign institutional investors inflows over the past three consecutive sessions. "Domestic markets surged ~1%. However, a slight recovery in the US dollar index and crude oil prices capped sharp gains. US dollar declined for the fourth successive session on Tuesday on dovish comments from US Federal Reserve officials. Economic data from the US, however, remained mixed," he said.

Choudhary said the rupee is expected to trade with a slight negative bias on dollar demand from importers towards the end of the month. Traders may take cues from GDP data from the US. Investors may also take cues from India’s GDP and fiscal deficit data towards the end of the month. USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 83 to Rs 83.60. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading higher by 0.13 per cent at 102.88. Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures surged 1.11 per cent to USD 82.59 per barrel.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 727.71 points, or 1.10 per cent, to settle at 66,901.91 points. The Nifty climbed 206.90 points, or 1.04 per cent, to 20,096.60 points. Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market on Tuesday as they purchased shares worth Rs 783.82 crore, according to exchange data.