The rupee continued its upward trend for the fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, gaining 12 paise to close at 86.44 (provisional) against the US dollar. This appreciation was driven by a positive trend in domestic equity markets and lower global crude oil prices. However, the rupee’s sharp gain was limited by the strengthening of the American currency against major currencies overseas ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision.
Opening at 86.60, the rupee touched an intraday low of 86.68 against the greenback. It then reached a high of 86.43 before settling at 86.44 (provisional) at the end of the session. This marked a 12 paise increase from its previous close of 86.56 on Tuesday.
Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, attributed the rupee’s strength to strong domestic equities, a decline in crude oil prices, and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) inflows. Choudhary predicted a positive bias for the rupee, supported by positive domestic markets, fresh FII inflows, falling crude oil prices, and a weakening US dollar. He expects the USD-INR spot price to trade in the range of ₹86.20 to ₹86.80.
In the global market, the US dollar index rose 0.36% to 103.26, while Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, traded 0.77% lower at $70.02 per barrel in futures trade.
In domestic equities, the BSE Sensex gained 147.79 points to close at 75,449.05, and the Nifty rose 73.30 points to 22,907.60. FIIs turned net buyers and purchased equities worth ₹694.57 crore on Tuesday.
The overall outlook for the rupee remains positive, with the possibility of further gains supported by favorable market conditions and external factors.
