Rupee trades in narrow range against U.S. dollar

Representational image only.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

The Rupee witnessed a range-bound trading against the U.S. dollar in early trade on September 13, as the support from positive macroeconomic data was negated by elevated crude oil prices and a firm American currency.

Forex traders said domestic retail inflation data and industrial production figures were better than market expectations and supported investors’ sentiments.

However, investors are awaiting cues from the CPI data from the U.S. to know the path the U.S. FED will tread in its fight for lower inflation.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the Rupee was trading in a narrow range. It opened at 82.92 against the dollar. It touched a low of 82.95 against the American currency in initial trade. On Tuesday, the Rupee closed at 82.95 against the U.S. currency. Meanwhile, the dollar index fell marginally by 0.05% to 104.65.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.21% higher at $92.25 per barrel.

“With a strong pipeline of inflows and active RBI, the Rupee is likely to move towards 82.50 once the 82.80 mark is taken out. On the upside, 83.25 shall remain a strong resistance bar to breach,” CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari said.

In the domestic equity market, the BSE Sensex declined 6.07 points or 0.01% to 67,215.06. The NSE Nifty was up 1.80 points or 0.01% to 19,995.00.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday as they offloaded shares worth ₹1,047.19 crore, according to exchange data.

India’s industrial production growth rose to a five-month high of 5.7% in July, mainly due to good showing by the manufacturing, mining and power sectors, according to an official data released on Tuesday.

Retail inflation declined to 6.832% in August after touching a 15-month high of 7.44% in July, mainly due to softening prices of vegetables, but still remains above the Reserve Bank’s comfort zone.