Rupee steady against dollar
THE dollar remained largely steady at the 104.4-mark against the rupee last week owing to higher remittances and forex reserves and lower demand for the reserve currency.
Meanwhile, the dollar reportedly sank to seven-week lows against a basket of currencies last week as more signs of slowing growth in the United States and China raised doubts that the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this year.
Commencing last week in the interbank market on a stable note, the rupee remain unchanged at the prior week’s closing level of Rs104.42 and Rs104.44 in the first trading session. The parity stayed unchanged in the second trading session as well.
The rupee appreciated by five paisas against the dollar in both the interbank and open markets last week.
The local currency inched up by one-paisa in the third trading session, as the dollar slipped to Rs104.41 and Rs104.43.
The rupee then picked up four paisas for buying and five paisas for selling in the fourth trading session, as the dollar ended the day at Rs104.37 and Rs104.38. The rupee-dollar parity then remained unchanged at this level in the last trading session.
As a result, the dollar depreciated by five paisas against the rupee in the interbank market last week. Meanwhile, the local currency is up a net 13 paisas against the dollar in the first three weeks of October, according to independent reports.
The rupee also stayed firm in the open market amid lacklustre trading. Relatively lesser-than-usual demand from the corporate sector and no sizeable payments from the national exchequer kept the dollar from surging in the open market.