The Indian rupee touched a one-month intra day high of 61.31 Friday, only to surrender the gains and end one paisa lower at 61.54 against the dollar amid weak local equities.
It was the third successive day of consolidation for the rupee around the 61.53 level against the dollar. However, the local currency gained for the second straight week, adding 36 paise since last Friday.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 61.50 a dollar from the previous close of 61.53 and climbed to a high of 61.3175 on dollar sales by exporters and an overnight fall in the US currency in the New York market.
Continued foreign fund inflows into local equities also supported the local currency in the initial stages.
However, a steep fall in local stocks on selling in IT shares after the announcement of Q3 results by TCS late on Thursday and a strengthening US currency overseas pulled the rupee down to a low of 61.5775 before settling at 61.54, down by a mere one paisa.
The benchmark 30-share S&P BSE Sensex Friday slumped by 201.56 points or 0.95 per cent. Overseas investors bought local shares worth a net $90.74 million Thursday, as per Sebi data.
The dollar index was up 0.05 per cent ahead of US housing market and industrial output data releases.
"In the morning session, the rupee appreciated over quarter per cent, but in the second half it lost its gains as local equities closed almost 1 per cent down," said Pramit Brahmbhatt, CEO of Alpari Financial Services (India).
"The rupee firmed up against the dollar in late morning today due to selling of the US currency by banks and exporters on the back of its weakness overseas," said Abhishek Goenka, CEO of India Forex Advisors.
"The Indian benchmark indices tripped...on the back of profit booking by investors, which later weighed on the rupee and it ended almost flat," he said.
Forward dollar premiums recovered slightly following fresh payments from banks and some corporates.The benchmark six-month forward dollar premium payable in June edged up to 224-1/2 to 226-1/2 paise from the previous close of 224-226 paise.
Far-forward contracts maturing in December moved up to 459-461 paise from 457-1/2 to 459-1/2 paise.The RBI fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 61.3518 and for the euro at 83.5223.
The rupee fell sharply to 101.22 against the pound from 100.48 previously and turned negative to end at 58.94 per 100 Japanese yen from 58.73.It inched up to 83.71 per euro from 83.72.
Source:- businesstoday.intoday.in
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