Rupee settles on flat note at 83.31 against US dollar

Mumbai, Apr 8 (PTI) The rupee settled on a flat note on Monday at 83.31 (provisional) against the US dollar, as the support from positive domestic equities was negated by the strength of the American currency in the overseas market.

Forex traders said investor sentiments got a boost as crude oil prices retreated from their elevated levels, but the strength of the American currency in the overseas market weighed on the local unit and restricted the uptick.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.27 against the greenback. The unit hit an intra-day high of 83.23 and a low of 83.33.

The local unit finally settled at 83.31 (provisional) against the dollar, unchanged from its previous close.

On Friday, the rupee appreciated 8 paise to close at 83.31 against the US dollar as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent for the seventh time in a row.

“We expect the rupee to trade with a slight positive bias on the rise in risk appetite in global markets on reports that Israel has withdrawn its soldiers from Southern Gaza. FII inflows and strength in the domestic markets may also support the rupee.

“However, a positive tone in the greenback may cap sharp gains. Investors may remain cautious ahead of inflation data from the US and India later this week. USDINR spot price is expected to trade in the range of Rs 83.10 to Rs 83.50,” said Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07 per cent higher at 104.37 on declining expectations of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve following a strong jobs report and hawkish comments from Fed officials last week.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.92 per cent to USD 90.33 per barrel. On the domestic equity market front, Sensex advanced 494.28 points, or 0.67 per cent, to close at an all-time high of 74,742.50 points. The Nifty rose 152.60 points, or 0.68 per cent, to settle at a lifetime high of 22,666.30 points.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital markets on Friday as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,659.27 crore, according to exchange data.

India’s foreign exchange reserves increased USD 2.951 billion to USD 645.583 billion for the week ended March 29, the RBI said on Friday.

This is the sixth consecutive week of a jump in overall reserves. The kitty had increased by USD 140 million to USD 642.631 billion in the previous week.