Pahalgam Attack Shadows Rupee Gain As It Rises 16 Paise To 85.29, Crude Oil Prices Dip
Mumbai: After a two-day pause, the rupee gained 16 paise to 85.29 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, on weak greenback and overnight decline in crude oil prices.
Forex traders said the rupee strengthened on the weak US dollar and overnight decline in crude oil prices amid slowing US business activity. The US Treasury yields also declined with the 10-year yield falling 3 basis points to 4.35 per cent.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 85.60 and moved between the intra-day high of 85.25 and the low of 85.67 against the greenback. The unit ended the session at 85.29 (provisional), registering a gain of 16 paise over its previous closing level.
On Wednesday, the rupee depreciated 26 paise and settled for the day at 85.45 against the US dollar.
"We expect the rupee to trade with a positive bias as weakness in the US dollar is likely to remain intact amid trade tariff uncertainties. However, risk-on sentiments in the global markets and FII inflows may support the rupee at lower levels.
"Traders may take cues from weekly unemployment claims, durable goods orders and existing home sales data from the US. USDINR spot price is expected to trade in a range of 85 to 85.70," Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, said.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.51 per cent at 99.33.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.65 per cent at USD 66.55 per barrel in futures trade.
"Near-term technicals for spot USDINR indicate support at 85.03 and resistance at 85.70. High-frequency data suggests a stronger rupee, though geopolitical factors may cap the gains," Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst, HDFC Securities, said.
Traders said heightened geopolitical tensions, following the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, weighed on market sentiment.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday declared that the killers of Pahalgam will be pursued "to the ends of the earth" and promised to "identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backers".
India on Wednesday downgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan and announced a raft of measures, including expulsion of Pakistani military attaches, suspension of the Indus Water Treaty of 1960, and immediate shutting down of the Attari land-transit post in view of the cross-border links to the horrific Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 civilians were killed.
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex fell 256.90 points, or 0.32 per cent, to settle at 79,859.59, while the Nifty declined 82.25 points, or 0.34 per cent, to 24,246.70.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 3,332.93 crore on a net basis on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
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