• Rupee gains 11 paise against the US dollar, tracking domestic equities

    Business
    Rupee gains 11 paise against the US dollar, tracking domestic equities
    Forex traders said investors are looking forward to India's CPI data, which is set to be announced later...

    Digital Desk:  In early trade on Wednesday, the rupee surged 11 paise to 82.01 against the US dollar, mirroring a strong trend in local equities and foreign fund inflows.

    Forex traders said investors are looking forward to India's CPI data, which will be announced later in the day.

    The local unit opened at 82.08 versus the dollar on the interbank foreign exchange, then rose to 82.01, an increase of 11 paise from its previous closing.

    The rupee finished at 82.12 versus the US dollar on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the US currency against a basket of six currencies, dropped 0.11 percent to 102.08.

    Brent crude futures rose 0.04 percent to USD 85.64 a barrel, the global oil benchmark. "The market will be focusing on India's CPI data, which is likely to come in at 5.80 percent vs 6.44 percent previously," CR Forex Advisors MD-Amit Pabari said.

    However, declining inflation may force the RBI to pivot on the interest rate hike cycle, which may damage the rupee in the future due to the narrowing interest rate disparity between the US and India, according to Pabari.

    In the domestic equities market, the 30-share BSE Sensex rose 74.07 points, or 0.12%, to 60,231.79. The NSE Nifty rose 37.45 points, or 0.21 percent, to 17,759.75.

    According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net purchasers in the capital market on Tuesday, acquiring shares worth Rs 342.84 crore.