Rupee falls 2 paise to 83.27/USD

Mumbai: The rupee settled 2 paise lower at 83.27 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday, tracking negative cues from domestic equity markets amid surging crude oil prices overseas.

However, fresh foreign capital inflows and a weak greenback against major rivals overseas favoured the rupee and restricted the loss, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 83.24 against the dollar and traded in a narrow range of 83.23 to 83.27. It finally settled at 83.27 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a loss of 2 paise over its previous close. On Tuesday, the rupee settled at 83.25 against the US dollar.

Anuj Choudhary, research analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, said: “The rupee declined amid weak domestic markets and a jump in crude oil prices. However, the softening of the US dollar cushioned the downside.

The US dollar softened as US President Joe Biden landed in Israel raising expectations that the Hamas-Israel conflict may get contained. This waned safe-haven demand for the US dollar. Dovish comments from US Federal Reserve officials also weighed on the greenback. Economic data from the US on Tuesday topped forecasts as retail sales and industrial production were better than market expectations.”