Finance
Following the presentation of the Union Budget for 2023-24 by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the rupee pared initial gains and settled 2 paise lower at 81.90 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday.
Forex traders reported that investors remained on the sidelines as they awaited the outcome of the US Federal Reserve meeting later that evening.
The rupee opened at 81.76 against the US dollar on the interbank foreign exchange market and eventually settled at 81.90, down 2 paise from its previous close.
Against the US dollar, the rupee reached an intraday high of 81.68 and a low of 82.03 during the session.
The rupee fell 36 paise to a three-week low of 81.88 against the US dollar on Tuesday after the Economic Survey 2022-23 said the domestic unit may remain under pressure on account of plateauing of exports and subsequent widening of the current account deficit.
In her Budget speech, Sitharaman maintained the country’s fiscal deficit target of 6.4 percent in the Revised Estimate for FY23 and reduced it to 5.9 percent in FY24.
She stated that the fiscal deficit will be reduced to less than 4.5 percent of GDP by 2025-26.
According to finance ministry data released on Tuesday, the government’s fiscal deficit as of December 31 reached 59.8 percent of the full-year Budget Estimate due to slow growth in revenue collections.
According to a monthly survey, India’s manufacturing sector activity moderated in January due to a slower increase in total sales, and headcounts remained broadly unchanged due to sufficient staff numbers to meet current requirements.
The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell from 57.8 in December to 55.4 in January, as factory orders and output rose at a slower pace.
The dollar index, which measures the strength of the US currency against a basket of six currencies, was 0.14 percent lower at 101.95.
Brent crude futures fell 0.26 percent to USD 85.24 per barrel, the global oil benchmark.
The 30-share BSE Sensex finished 187.31 points, or 0.31 percent, higher at 59,708.08, while the NSE Nifty fell 45.85 points, or 0.26 percent, to 17,616.30.
According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital market on Tuesday, offloading shares worth Rs 5,439.64 crore.
Source:FE
