Rupee closed nine paise lower at 73.66 against the US dollar
The rupee snapped its two-day winning streak to close at nine paise lower against the US dollar on Thursday, December 10, at 73.66 (provisional), tracking muted domestic equities and a rebound in the American currency. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 73.68 against the dollar and registered an intra-day high of 73.62. It recorded a low of 73.77. In an early trade session, the domestic unit slipped 11 paise to 73.68 against the greenback. The rupee finally settled at 73.66 against the American currency, registering a fall of nine paise over its previous close. On Wednesday, December 10, the rupee marginally strengthened by three paise, marking its seven-week high of 73.57 against the dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 0.09 per cent down at 91.00. According to traders, the domestic unit was trading in a narrow range as a rebound of the dollar, the Brexit deal impasse, as well as the Reserve Bank of India’s presence in the market, weighed on investor sentiments. Sustained foreign fund inflows also supported the rupee.
According to provisional exchange data, the foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 3,564.23 crore on a net basis on December 9. On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended at 143.62 points or 0.31 per cent lower at 45,959.88, while the NSE Nifty declined 50.80 points or 0.38 per cent to 13,478.30.
“Weak US and Asian markets dragged the Indian market lower on Thursday with the Nifty 50 index slipping below the 13400 levels. Selling in Bank Nifty added to the fall. However, buying in FMCG heavyweights like ITC, HUL, Nestle and Britannia helped the market recover from its lower levels. The chart indicates a reversal formation in the Nifty 50 index that has been formed after hitting the lows of 13400. However, if the Nifty 50 index has to scale new highs it needs to sustain a move above 13530 levels,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Executive Vice President, Equity Technical Research at Kotak Securities.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose by 0.78 per cent to USD 49.24 per barrel.