Rupee rises 12 paise to 85.29 against US dollar in early trade

MUMBAI: The rupee appreciated 12 paise to 85.29 against the US dollar in early trade on Monday, supported by strong domestic fundamentals, such as rising forex reserves and healthy capital inflows.

Forex traders said a steady rise in reserves enhances India's import cover, providing a crucial buffer against external shocks and lending stability to the rupee.

However, the rupee could face pressure amid any escalation in tensions between India and Pakistan as geopolitical uncertainties like these tend to drive investors toward safer assets, causing outflows from emerging markets and weakening local currencies like the rupee.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 85.29 against the greenback, registering a gain of 12 paise over its previous close.

In initial trade, the rupee also touched an early low of 85.42 against the greenback.

On Friday, the rupee settled lower by 8 paise at 85.41 against the US dollar.

"Looking ahead, USD/INR is expected to remain volatile. Strong domestic fundamentals, such as rising forex reserves and healthy capital inflows, are likely to support the rupee. However, persistent geopolitical tensions and global risk aversion could cap any meaningful appreciation," CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari said.

Technically, USD/INR has strong support between 85.00 and 85.20 levels, and it could move towards the 85.80–86.20 range, Pabari added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading higher by 0.17 per cent at 99.63.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.22 per cent at USD 67.02 per barrel in futures trade.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 426.00 points or 0.54 per cent to 79,638.53, while the Nifty rose 144.55 points or 0.60 per cent to 24,183.90.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,952.33 crore on a net basis on Friday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, India's forex reserves jumped USD 8.31 billion to USD 686.145 billion for the week ended April 18, the RBI said on Friday.

This is the seventh consecutive week of a rise in the kitty, which had jumped by USD 1.567 billion to USD 677.835 billion in the previous reporting week ended April 11. The forex reserves had touched an all-time high of USD 704.885 billion in end-September 2024.