Rupee ends unchanged at 94.46 against US dollar after intraday losses

Mumbai: The rupee settled flat at 94.46 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, as support from lower crude oil prices was offset by a firm greenback in overseas markets.

Forex traders said the Indian rupee was showing signs of near-term stabilisation after recovering sharply against the US dollar in previous sessions. A positive trend in domestic equities and softening crude oil prices, however, cushioned the downside.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened weak at 94.36 and fell further to an intraday low of 94.57. The currency recovered some losses in the closing session to settle at 94.46 (provisional), unchanged from its previous close.

On Wednesday, the rupee remained firm for the second consecutive session, settling 29 paise higher at 94.46 against the US dollar.

“The factors favour the rupee: foreign portfolio inflows can pick up as India stands out from the AI unwind, political uncertainty in the US can weigh on the dollar, and India’s import bill falls with every dollar off crude.

“The RBI’s calibrated management, with the repo rate at 5.50 per cent and reserves of about USD 720 billion, has kept the currency orderly through the worst of the oil shock and now gives it room to appreciate without disorder,” said Anindya Banerjee, Head of Commodity and Currency Research at Kotak NEO.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 101.50, down 0.06 per cent.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 1.38 per cent higher at USD 95.93 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex jumped 2,008.61 points to close at 79,310.01, while the Nifty surged 576 points to 24,536.60.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) remained net buyers on Wednesday, purchasing equities worth Rs 7,284.03 crore, according to exchange data.