Rupee ended up today, snapping its six-day fall against the US dollar, as banks persistently sold greenbacks due to the sharp rise in the local share market lifted the sentiment for the local unit, dealers said.
The Indian unit ended at Rs 48.2500 per $1, compared with Rs 48.5000 per $1 on Friday. It moved in a range of Rs 47.9900-48.3000 per $1.
“The sentiment for the Indian rupee was up since morning as shares rallied today,” said a dealer at a state-owned bank. “All equities were doing good today. There could have been some inflows from foreign funds too,” said a dealer at an Asian bank.
The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex ended 7.64 per cent up or by 804.38 points, compared with Friday, while the National Stock Exchange gained 6.43 per cent. According to dealers, a major US and a large UK bank were among major sellers of dollars today in the band of Rs 48.1500-48.2500 per $1.
Noting the early rise in the rupee, some exporters also preferred to sell dollars, which, in turn, helped the Indian unit to rise to an intraday high of Rs 47.99 per $1, dealers said.
Greenback’s fall against most Asian currencies also helped the rupee to rise against the US unit, dealers said.
“The cues from Asian currencies in early trade helped the rupee a lot to rally against the dollar today,” said a dealer at a US bank.
However, dollar demand from oil companies and other importers prevented a sharp rise in the Indian unit, dealers said. “A large state-owned oil company bought dollars between Rs 48.1000-48.2000 rupees per $1 level, said a dealer at a private bank.
“Some banks also covered short-dollar positions in late trade as the near-term outlook for the rupee remains bleak. So, most traders don’t mind staying long on dollars,” said a dealer at another state-owned bank.
