Rupee opens on flat note against US dollar

Mumbai: The rupee opened on a flat note against the US dollar on Friday as recovery of the US dollar from its lows limited the appreciation of the domestic currency.

At the interbank forex market, the rupee was trading in a narrow range. It opened at 73.87 against the American currency and soon recovered the lost ground and was trading at 73.82, unchanged from its previous close.

According to a Reliance Securities report, the recovery of the US dollar from its lows could limit the appreciation, while depreciation bias will be limited, supported by foreign flows in the market.

"The US dollar was flat this morning in Asian trade, but downside remained limited for the greenback after the Federal Reserve's aggressive new strategy to lift employment and increased tolerance for higher inflation pushed US bond yields up," the report



said.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.19 per cent to 92.82.

Forex traders said US Fed Chair Jerome Powell's dovish statement, positive trend in the equity markets, weak American currency and sustained foreign fund inflows supported the rupee and restricted the downfall.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 152.88 points higher at 39,266.35, and the broader NSE Nifty advanced 44.20 points to 11,603.45.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,164.32 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.02 per cent to USD 45.10 per barrel.