Indian rupee rises against UAE dirham, US dollar

The Indian rupee appreciated by 8 paise to 81.93 against the US dollar (22.32 against UAE dirham) in early trade on Thursday amid weak American currency and robust inflow of foreign funds into Indian equity markets.

Easing of crude prices boosted the South Asian currency, forex traders said, while the dollar was under pressure amid concerns of further rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve as indicated by Fed Chair Jerome Powell in his Tuesday speech.

At the Indian interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened stronger at 81.94 and touched a peak of 81.90. The currency later traded at 81.93 against the greenback, registering a gain of 8 paise from its previous close.

On June 21, the rupee settled at 82.01 against the dollar.

“Slippage past 82.04 has made 81.9 vulnerable again, exposing 81.75-55. We do not expect a collapse though. We will retain upswing expectation, as long as 81.9 vicinity holds,” said Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was down 0.05 per cent at 102.03.

Crude oil price benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.30 per cent lower at $76.89 per barrel.

In the equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 72.47 points or 0.11% to 63,450.68, while broader NSE Nifty slipped 7.30 points or 0.4 per cent to 18,849.55.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the Indian capital markets on Wednesday as they bought shares worth ₹40.13 billion, according to exchange data.

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