Re falls 4 paise as dollar rebounds

Mumbai The rupee depreciated 4 paise to close at 81.97 against the US dollar on Friday, weighed down by a rebound in the American currency and firm crude oil prices in global markets.

Besides, a negative trend in domestic equity benchmarks also dented investor sentiment, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.03 against the dollar and settled at 81.97, down 4 paise from its previous close. During the day, the rupee touched a high of 81.94 and a low of 82.05 against the greenback. On Thursday, the rupee had settled at 81.93 against the dollar. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, advanced 0.12 per cent to 101. “The greenback has extended a run of gains against major currencies ahead of next week’s big three central bank’s policy decision,” said Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst, HDFC Securities.

In the coming week, the forex market is expected to be volatile since US Fed, ECB, and BoJ rate decisions will be announced, along with month-end adjustments. “Spot USD/INR has strong support at 81.75 and resistance at 82.30. In accordance with the derivative data, the pair is expected to settle at around 82 by the end of July,” Parmar added.