Mumbai, May 26 (PTI) Rising for the second straight session, the rupee jumped 35 paise to close at 85.10 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, buoyed by a positive trend in domestic equity markets and a weak American currency overseas.
According to forex traders, the inflow of foreign funds and the RBI’s announcement of giving a record dividend of Rs 2.69 lakh crore to the government for FY25 added strength to the local currency even as a slight recovery in crude oil prices capped its gain.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 85.02 and moved between the intra-day high of 84.78 and the lowest level of 85.18 against the US dollar. The unit ended the session at 85.10 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a gain of 35 paise over its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee appreciated 50 paise to close at 85.45 against the US dollar.
Market participants are waiting for further cues since the industrial and manufacturing production data for April and the Q1 GDP growth numbers are scheduled to be released this week.
Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, said the rupee gained on positive domestic markets and weak US dollar index.
“Improved global risk sentiments and positive global markets may also support the rupee,” Choudhary said, adding that volumes may remain thin as US markets will remain closed on the Memorial Day holiday. “USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 84.70 to Rs 85.40.” Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.07 per cent at 98.94.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.17 per cent to USD 64.89 per barrel in futures trade.
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 455.37 points, or 0.56 per cent, to close at 82,176.45, while the Nifty rose 148.00 points, or 0.60 per cent, to 25,001.15.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 1,794.59 crore on a net basis on Friday, according to exchange data.
The Reserve Bank of India’s latest weekly data released on Friday showed India’s forex reserves dropped USD 4.888 billion to USD 685.729 billion for the week ended May 16.
