Rupee rises 7 paise to close at 81.94 against US dollar

New Delhi, Jul 27 (PTI) The rupee gained 7 paise to close at 81.94 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, tracking the weakness of the American currency in the overseas market after the US Fed raised interest rates on expected lines.

However, weak domestic markets and a surge in crude oil prices capped sharp gains.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 81.92 against the US dollar and moved in a range of 81.91 to 82.03 in the day trade.

The rupee finally settled 7 paise higher at 81.94 (provisional) against the previous close of 82.01 on Friday.

The rupee gained on the weak US Dollar and positive Asian and European markets amid stimulus talks from China, said Anuj Choudhary – Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) hiked interest rates by 25 basis points to the 5.25-5.50 per cent range, the highest in 16 years.

However, the US Federal Reserve kept its options going forward open as it made future cases depending on incoming data, Choudhary said.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.19 per cent to 100.69.

“We expect the rupee to trade with a slight negative bias on expectations of a hawkish tone from key global central banks to tame inflation and rising crude oil prices.

“Month-end Dollar demand from importers and worries over global economic slowdown may also weigh on the rupee. However, FII inflows may support the rupee at lower levels. We expect the USD/INR spot to trade in the range of 81.50 to 82.30 in the near term,” Choudhary added.

Meanwhile, Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, advanced 1.01 per cent to USD 83.76 per barrel.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE Sensex closed 440.38 points or 0.66 per cent lower at 66,266.82. The broader NSE Nifty fell 118.40 points or 0.6 per cent to 19,659.90.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital markets on Wednesday as they purchased shares worth Rs 922.84 crore, according to exchange data.