Rupee begins trading against the US dollar 5 paise higher at 83.20

 Rupee begins trading against the US dollar 5 paise higher at 83.20

On Wednesday, the rupee started the day 5 paise higher versus the US dollar, following indications from strong equities markets and a declining value of the US dollar relative to its main international competitors. The exchange rate of the local currency versus the dollar at opening was 83.20 to 83.25.

The dollar index, which measures the value of the dollar against a basket of six other currencies, was down 0.05% at 105.77.

The exchange rate of the rupee to the US dollar on Tuesday was 83.25.

The rupee continued to trade in a constrained range even as additional information about the intensifying war in Israel came in, according to Gaurang Somaiya, a currency and bullion analyst at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

He claims that traders should keep an eye on the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) minutes because they might reveal more interest rate increases that would strengthen the currency.

We anticipate that the USD-INR (spot) would fluctuate sideways and trade between 83.05 and 83.40," Somaiya said.

The benchmark for world oil, Brent crude futures, increased 0.38% to $87.98 a barrel.

The 30-share BSE Sensex increased by 455.36 points or 0.69% to 66,534.72 points on the domestic equities market, while the larger NSE Nifty increased by 137.80 points or 0.7% to 19,827.65 points.

According to preliminary data made available on the exchanges, foreign major investors (FIIs) net sold Indian shares worth $1,005.49 crore on Tuesday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought shares worth $1,963.34 crore.