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Rupee Ends Volatile Session Higher At 73.52 Against Dollar; All Eyes On US Central Bank

Rupee Vs Dollar: The rupee is down 3.01% against the dollar so far this year
Rupee Vs Dollar: The rupee is down 3.01% against the dollar so far this year

Rupee Vs Dollar Today: The rupee ended a volatile day on Wednesday marginally higher at 73.52 against the dollar, ahead of the release of a policy statement by the US central bank following a two-day meeting. It traded in a broad range of 30 paise, between 73.47 and 73.77, during the four-hour session before settling with a gain of 12 paise - or 0.16 per cent - for the day. The rupee had begun Wednesday's session mildly weaker at 73.69 against the greenback compared to its previous close of 73.64. Analysts say any sign of increase in bond purchases may boost the markets. 

Domestic equity markets continued to gain for a second straight day, with benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty scaling their highest closing levels since August 28. The Sensex index ended 0.66 per cent higher at 39,302.85, and the broader Nifty benchmark shut shop at 11,604.55, up 82.75 points - or 0.72 per cent - from its previous close.

Gains in most Asian currencies against the dollar supported the rupee in Wednesday's session. The dollar index - which gauges the US currency against euro, sterling, yen and three other currencies - was last seen trading 0.20 per cent lower, having declined as much as 0.29 per cent earlier.

While the Japanese yen was last seen trading 0.48 per cent higher against the American currency, the Chinese yuan was up 0.31 per cent, and the Singaporean dollar up 0.22 per cent.

The Thai baht, the Indonesian rupiah and the South Korean won were up 0.33 per cent, 0.01 per cent and 0.22 per cent at the time.

"The rupee could tilt slightly towards the weaker side in the coming sessions. Also, buying pressure by importers and state-run companies is aggravating the northward move," said Amit Pabari, managing director at forex advisory firm CR Forex.

"However, as long as the (USD-INR) pair trades below 74.50 and the there is no further escalation on the geopolitical front, depreciation in the pair, if any, will be limited to 74.50," he said.

Meanwhile, crude oil prices soared for a second straight day, as a hurricane closed US offshore oil and gas production. Brent crude futures - the global benchmark for crude oil - jumped as much as 2.69 per cent to $41.62 per barrel. 

At the current level, the rupee is down 3.01 per cent against the dollar so far this year. However, it has recovered 4.41 per cent from an all-time low of 76.91, registered in April.