The rupee gained 14 paise to close at 82.73 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar in the last trading session of 2022, as the American currency retreated from its elevated levels and a rising appetite for riskier assets among investors.
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The local currency, however, ended the year on a negative note, with a loss of 844 paise or 11.36%, primarily led by a strong dollar against its major crosses overseas.
The greenback climbed in the overseas market as the U.S. Federal Reserve raised rates aggressively following surging inflation.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.77 and touched an intra-day high of 82.70 and a low of 82.82 against the greenback. It finally settled at 82.73, registering a rise of 14 paise over its previous close of 82.87.
On December 31, 2021, the rupee settled at 74.29 against the U.S. dollar.
According to Anuj Choudhary — Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, the rupee appreciated on Friday on softness in U.S. dollar and risk-on sentiments in global markets.
However, a surge in crude oil prices and sustained selling by foreign investors put downside pressure on the rupee. FIIs have remained in the past 5 consecutive sessions. The U.S. dollar declined on the rise in risk appetite in global markets.
"We expect the rupee to trade with a slight negative bias on expectations of recovery in the U.S. dollar and recovery in crude oil prices. Concerns over a surge in COVID-19 cases may also put downside pressure on the rupee," Choudhary said.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 293.14 points or 0.48% to end at 60,840.74, while the broader NSE Nifty fell 85.70 points or 0.47% to 18,105.30.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, advanced 0.02% to 103.85.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell 0.53% to $83.02 per barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Thursday as they offloaded shares worth ₹572.78 crore, according to exchange data.
