Mumbai, Nov 9 (PTI) The rupee appreciated 21 paise to 93.77 against the US dollar on Monday, boosted by easing crude oil prices, stronger foreign fund inflows, and optimism regarding de-escalation in West Asia.
Forex traders said continued foreign inflows, stable crude, and a mild dollar offer tailwinds for the rupee. However, gains were capped by renewed greenback demand, geopolitical risks, and a rebound in energy prices.
In the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at around 93.85 against the greenback and witnessed an intraday high of 93.69 and a low of 94.11. At the end of the session, the rupee was quoted at 93.77, higher by 21 paise from its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee surged 43 paise to close at 93.98 against the US dollar.
"The Indian rupee registered a technical retracement, snapping a five-day winning streak amid state-run bank dollar buying ahead of a market holiday. The intraday correction followed morning gains catalysed by a soft dollar index, resilient foreign institutional inflows, and weaker crude oil pricing," said Dilip Parmar – Senior Research Analyst, HDFC Securities.
Market participants are now closely monitoring Tuesday's upcoming US inflation data for fresh directional cues. In the near term, spot USD/INR finds key support at 93.50 and resistance at 94.30, he added.
Over the weekend, encouraging news came from West Asia, as US President Donald Trump indicated that fresh military strikes against Iran are highly unlikely if negotiations progress and both sides reach a strong agreement.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 101.83, lower by 0.45 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.80 per cent lower at USD 97.53 per barrel in futures trade.
"Overall, the near-term outlook remains moderately positive for the rupee, with USD/INR likely to remain sensitive to global dollar movements, crude oil trends and RBI intervention," said Gaurav Garg, Head - Research, Lemonn.
Meanwhile, IDFC First Bank Economic Research, in a report, said the Reserve Bank of India's net short position of USD 239 billion in the forward market is likely to limit the rupee's appreciation despite a recovery in foreign portfolio investor (FPI) inflows, according to a report.
Around USD 40 billion of the short position matures within a year, USD 56 billion in one to three years, and the remaining USD 143 billion in three to five years. The longer-duration positions are largely linked to the FCNR (B) scheme, it added.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 7,212.22 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.
Meanwhile, India's forex reserves dropped USD 2.691 billion to USD 717.056 billion during the week ended October 30, the RBI said on Friday.
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)