Mumbai: At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.28 against the US dollar and settled at 82.10 (provisional), up 15 paise over its previous close amid a positive trend in domestic equities.
The rupee gained 15 paise today, helped by robust macro fundamentals, foreign institutional investment inflows and a week greenback against major rivals overseas.
During the day, the domestic unit witnessed an intra-day high of 82.08 and a low of 82.32. On Tuesday, the rupee closed at 82.25 against the US currency. The Indian rupee rose to a one-month high on reports of corporate inflows and positive domestic equities.
It is clear that a rise in risk appetite in global markets may also support rupee such that a positive tone in crude oil prices may cap a sharp upside. We expect the USD/INR spot to trade between 81.60 to 82.50 in the near term. The dollar index fell 0.18 per cent to 103.15.
On the domestic macroeconomic front, the wholesale price-based inflation rate fell to a 3-year low of 3.48 per cent in May on easing prices of food, fuel, and manufactured items, strengthening the case for continuing with the pause in rate hikes in coming months.