Rupee gains 10 paise to 68.86 a dollar in opening trade

The rupee opened higher against the greenback on Tuesday, as sustained overseas fund inflows in the debt and equity markets helped support the domestic currency.

At 09:10 AM, the rupee was trading at 68.86 a dollar, up 10 paise from its Monday’s close of 68.96. The home currency opened at 68.90 and touched a high and a low of 68.85 and 68.91 a dollar, respectively.

The Indian currency has been riding high on massive liquidity push in the form of strong foreign fund inflows in March. On a net basis, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought equities worth a net Rs 150.40 crore Monday, provisional data showed.

Globally, the dollar edged higher after hitting a six-week low of 109.70 the previous day, when fears of a global economic slowdown depressed US yields and boosted investor demand for the yen.

The greenback edged up 0.15 percent to 110.13 yen on Tuesday.

In commodity markets, oil prices firmed, pushed up by ongoing supply cuts led by producer club OPEC and by US sanctions on Iran and Venezuela

International Brent crude oil futures were at $67.46 per barrel at 0110 GMT, up 25 cents, or 0.4 percent, from their last close.

In debt markets, the yields on the 10-year government bonds were up 0.05 percent to 7.33 percent from its previous close of 7.32 percent. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.