Rupee falls 5 paise to close at 82.23 against US dollar

Mumbai, Jul 31 (PTI) The rupee depreciated 5 paise to close at 82.23 (provisional) against the US dollar, tracking surging crude oil prices and a strong greenback against major rivals overseas.

Besides, month-end dollar demand from importers and foreign capital outflows weighed on the local currency, which found some cushion at a lower level due to positive sentiment in the domestic equity markets, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.23. It finally settled at 82.23 (provisional) against the American currency, registering a fall of 5 paise against its previous close.

During intra-day, the Indian unit touched the peak of 82.21 and hit the lowest level of 82.29 against the dollar.

On Friday, the rupee had settled at 82.18 against the dollar.

Traders were also upbeat on the dollar following positive macroeconomic data from the US and robust sentiment in the global markets.

According to Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, the rupee declined on the strong US dollar and elevated crude oil prices.

“WTI crude oil prices breached the USD 80/barrel mark and are comfortably trading above the same. Month-end dollar demand from importers also weighed on the rupee. However, positive domestic markets cushioned the downside”.

“We expect the rupee to trade with a negative bias on the strong dollar and some felling by FIIs over the past couple of sessions. However, improved global risk appetite may support the rupee at lower levels,” Choudhary said.

Choudhary said participants may take cues from India’s fiscal deficit data expected to be released on Monday and PMI data later this week.

“Investors may remain cautious ahead of PMI data and jobs reports from the US this week. We expect the USD/INR spot to trade in the range of 81.80 to 82.80 in the near term,” he added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.07 per cent to 101.70.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, were trading 0.41 per cent higher at USD 85.34 per barrel.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex closed 367.47 points or 0.56 per cent higher at 66,527.67. The broader NSE Nifty advanced 107.75 points or 0.55 per cent to 19,753.80.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Friday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,023.91 crore, according to exchange data.