Rupee rises 12 paise to 82.52 against US dollar

The rupee was trading in a narrow range and appreciated by 12 paise to 82.52 against the US dollar in early trade on Monday, tracking positive Asian peers and domestic equities. Forex traders said the rupee is trading in a range as selling pressure by foreign investors dented sentiments while easing crude oil prices cushioned the downside.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.58, then touched a high of 82.52 against the American currency, registering a rise of 12 paise over its last close. In initial trade, the rupee also touched a low of 82.59 against the American currency. On Friday, the rupee declined by 8 paise to settle at 82.64 against the US dollar. "After a not too hawkish Powell in Jackson Hole Symposium on Friday risk assets were all up as Dow Jones Rose by 247 points and Asian stocks were also up," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

Bhansali further said the rupee has gained slightly at the opening in a data-driven week that will see the release of PMIs of most nations, as also the NFPR on Friday, and looks to be in a range as the US and India GDP data are also awaited this week. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading flat at 104.07.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.11 per cent to USD 84.39 per barrel. In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 92.24 points or 0.14 per cent higher at 64,978.75. The broader NSE Nifty advanced 41.70 points or 0.22 per cent to 19,307.50.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in capital markets on Friday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 4,638.21 crore, according to exchange data. Meanwhile, India's foreign exchange reserves dropped by USD 7.273 billion to USD 594.888 billion in the week ended August 18, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Friday. In the previous week, the overall reserves had risen by USD 708 million to USD 602.161 billion.