Rupee logs fourth straight gains, rises 7 paise against US dollar
Rising for the fourth straight session, the rupee appreciated by 7 paise to close at 73.42 against the US dollar on Tuesday
image for illustrative purpose
Mumbai: Rising for the fourth straight session, the rupee appreciated by 7 paise to close at 73.42 against the US dollar on Tuesday, amid heavy buying in domestic equities and unabated foreign fund inflows. A weaker greenback in the overseas markets also supported the rupee, forex dealers said. At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 73.42 against the US dollar and witnessed an intra-day high of 73.34 and a low of 73.44.
The local unit finally settled at 73.42 against the American currency, registering a rise of 7 paise over its previous close. On Monday, the rupee had settled at 73.49 against the US dollar. Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty scaled fresh record highs on Tuesday, extending their bull run for the fifth straight session on the back of gains in banking and IT stocks.
The BSE gauge Sensex settled with gains of 259.33 points or 0.55 per cent at a new closing high of 47,613.08. The NSE barometer Nifty ended higher by 59.40 points or 0.43 per cent at a fresh closing peak of 13,932.60.
Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 2,349.53 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, according to provisional exchange data. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.32 per cent to 90.04. .
"Indian rupee continues upward momentum for the fourth day in a row on the back of strong foreign fund inflows," said Devarsh Vakil, Deputy Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities. In the last four trading sessions, the Indian rupee has gained 42 paise against the American currency.
According to Vakil, the Dollar index weakened after the US House-backed President Donald Trump's proposal for higher stimulus checks. "Spot USD/INR touched an intraday low of 73.35, the weakest level since October 20. The RBI will not allow the rupee to appreciate much from current levels. 73.95 will act as resistance," he noted. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.24 per cent to $51.49 per barrel. (PTI)
