Rupee gains 14 paise to close at 81.92 against US dollar

The rupee appreciated 14 paise to close at 81.92 against the US dollar on Monday as a firm trend in domestic equities and weak dollar boosted investor sentiments. However, selling pressure from foreign institutional investors may weigh on the rupee at higher levels. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.08 against the US currency and finally closed at 81.92 against the greenback, registering a gain of 14 paise over its previous close.

During the session, the rupee touched a high of 81.88 and a low of 82.09 against the dollar.

The rupee on Friday settled at 82.06 against the US dollar.

The rupee appreciated on Monday on strong domestic equities and a soft US dollar.

Weak trend in crude oil price also supported the rupee. However, FII outflows capped sharp gains, Anuj Choudhary - Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas - said.

"We expect the rupee to trade with a positive tone on easing global crude oil price and positive domestic equities. Dollar may continue to remain weak as overall economic data continues to remain largely weak, leading to increasing concerns over recession," Choudhary said.

According to him, selling pressure from FIIs may also weigh on the rupee at higher levels.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.35 per cent to 101.47.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures went up 0.60 per cent to $82.15 per barrel.

According to Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst at LKP Securities, rupee scaled higher near 81.90 as the dollar index comprising six basket currencies drifted lower below $101.40.

"Crude prices softening also helped the prices of rupee to rise. Adding further fuel to the speed was capital market positive buying witnessed pushing the rupee higher as financial markets mainly banking and finance sectors saw strong buying momentum by FIIs into the Indian markets," Trivedi said.

"Going ahead the rupee positive rally can continue towards 81.50 with support seen at 82.15-82.25," Trivedi added.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 401.04 points or 0.67 per cent to end at 60,056.10 points, and the broader NSE Nifty gained 119.35 points or 0.68 per cent to 17,743.40 points.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital market on Monday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 412.27 crore, as per exchange data.

Meanwhile, India's forex reserves rose $1.657 billion to $586.412 billion as of April 14, according to Reserve Bank of India data released on Friday.