Re falls 1ps closes at 83.28 for 1$

Mumbai: The rupee consolidated in a narrow range and settled lower by 1 paisa at 83.28 against the US dollar on Wednesday, tracking a strong American currency overseas. Forex traders said a muted trend in domestic equities also weighed on the local unit while a correction in oil prices provided support to the currency. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.25 and touched a low of 83.29 against the greenback. It finally settled at 83.28 (provisional) against the dollar, registering a fall of 1 paisa from its previous close.

On Tuesday, the rupee had settled lower at 83.27 against the US dollar. “Decline in oil prices is positive for the domestic currency; however, a firmer dollar index is helping the pair trade with a slight gain,” said Praveen Singh, Associate VP, Fundamental Currencies and Commodities, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas. Singh further noted that traders will be paying close attention to Jerome Powell’s speech. Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey’s speech will also be in focus. “Geopolitical tensions continue to simmer due to the Middle East war; however, the war is being seen as largely contained. Overall, the USD-INR pair is still seen range-bound between Rs82.80 and Rs 83,” Singh said.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.24 per cent higher at 105.79. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.10 per cent to $81.69 per barrel. On the domestic equity market front, Sensex rose 33.21 points or 0.05 per cent to settle at 64,975.61. The Nifty advanced 36.80 points or 0.19 per cent to 19,443.50. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Tuesday as they sold shares worth Rs497.21 crore, according to exchange data.