The Indian rupee gained another 14 paise to close at 46.16/17 against the US dollar on sustained selling of the American currency by exporters and banks in view of the greenback’s weakness in overseas markets.
The Indian rupee resumed higher at 46.18/19 per dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market and shot up to close at 46.16/17 per dollar. It had closed yesterday at 46.30/31 per dollar.
The persistent inflow of foreign funds into domestic equity markets also assisted the rupee’s rise, a forex dealer said.
The rupee premium for the forward dollar also edged up on mild paying pressure from banks and corporates.
The benchmark six-month forward dollar premium payable in November closed slightly higher at 72-74 paise from 71-1/2-73 paise on Thursday and far-forward maturing in May also ended up at 131-1/2-132-1/2 paise from 131-132 paise previously.
However, the benchmark Sensex ended marginally lower by 45.87 points or 0.26 per cent today, ending a seven-day gaining streak.
Meanwhile, The euro held at three-week highs in London, on track for its second successive week of gains, while the dollar appeared vulnerable to further losses after falling below a key chart level.
The euro held gains as investors shed short positions after solid demand at the Spanish government bond auctions the previous day, easing concerns about Spain’s debt-servicing abilities and boosting the sentiment for riskier assets.
The dollar fell after a slew of below-forecast US economic data, which push US Treasuries yields to their lowest in a week.
Global crude oil was trading below USD 76 a barrel in London today.
The Reserve Bank of India fixed the reference rate for the dollar at Rs. 46.14 and for the euro at Rs. 57.18.
In cross currency trade, the domestic currency advanced further against the pound and the Japanese yen, as well as the euro.
The rupee moved up further against the pound to end at Rs. 68.28/30 per pound from Thursday’s close of 68.59/61 and recouped against the euro to Rs. 57.11/13 per euro from Rs. 57.31/33 previously.
It also hardened against the yen to Rs. 50.38/40 per 100 yen from the last close of Rs. 50.70/72.
