The rupee appreciated 7 paise to close at 82.91 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday, supported by a firm trend in domestic equities and a weak greenback against major currencies overseas amid rising appetite for riskier assets.
The interim Budget 2024-25, especially the focus on fiscal prudence, left a positive impact on the domestic currency, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.91 against the greenback. The unit hit an intraday high of 82.82 and a low of 82.93.
The local unit finally settled at 82.91 (provisional) against the dollar, higher by 7 paise from its previous close of 82.98.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday hiked capital expenditure by 11 per cent for the next fiscal to sustain a world-beating economic growth rate while trimming the deficit in a reform-oriented interim budget.
Continuing on the fiscally prudent path, the Modi government in the interim Budget refrained from announcing populist measures, which will help it trim the fiscal deficit to 5.1 per cent of the GDP next fiscal and 4.5 per cent in FY26.
"We expect the rupee to trade with a slight positive bias on a weak tone in the US dollar and a rise in risk appetite in global markets. Weakness in crude oil prices may also support the rupee. However, profit booking by FIIs may lead to outflows, which may cap a sharp upside in the rupee.
"Any recovery in crude oil prices may also weigh on the rupee at higher levels. Traders may take cues from US non-farm payroll reports and factory order data. The US is likely to add jobs but at a slower pace. USD/INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 82.50 to Rs 83.20," said Anuj Choudhary Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.11 per cent lower at 102.93.
"The US dollar declined on hawkish Bank of England monetary policy. Bank of England (BoE) kept interest rates unchanged at 5.25 per cent," Choudhary added.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.60 per cent to USD 79.17 per barrel.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex advanced 440.33 points, or 0.61 per cent, to 72,085.63 points. The Nifty rose 156.35 points, or 0.72 per cent, to 21,853.80 points.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Thursday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,879.58 crore, according to exchange data.
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