Finance
Early on Monday, the rupee fell 6 paise to 83.44 against the US dollar, reflecting weak equity markets and foreign investment withdrawals over growing worries about Middle East geopolitical tensions.
Forex dealers claimed that low oil prices, which are still above USD 90 per barrel, and a strong US dollar in international trade have also negatively impacted investor confidence.
The rupee depreciated by 6 paise from its previous closing at the interbank foreign exchange, where it opened at 83.46 versus the dollar and climbed somewhat to 83.44 in the first transaction.
On Friday, the rupee closed 7 paise lower at 83.38 against the US dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.08 per cent lower at 105.75.
The higher dollar index was attributed to diminishing expectations of an immediate rate cut by the US Federal Reserve.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, declined 0.31 per cent to USD 90.17 per barrel.
The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 569.05 points, or 0.77 percent, at 73,675.85 points on the domestic equities market. At 22,340.45 points, the larger NSE Nifty saw a decrease of 178.95 points, or 0.79 percent.
According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 8,027 crore on Friday, making them net sellers in the capital markets.
The RBI reported on Friday that during the week ending April 5, India’s foreign exchange reserves increased by USD 2.98 billion to reach a new high of USD 648.562 billion.
Source:IE
