The rupee opened higher against the US dollar on Wednesday, as oil prices took a breather after Saudi Arabia said it had fully restored its crude supply. At 09:06 AM, the rupee was trading at 71.44 a dollar, up 34 paise from its Tuesday’s close of 71.78. The home currency opened at 71.49 and touched a high and a low of 71.43 and 71.51 a dollar, respectively.
India is the world’s third-largest oil importer. Lower crude oil prices help bring down the country’s trade deficit and aids the rupee.
In the currency market, the dollar traded near a seven-week high versus the yen as oil markets recovered from a supply shock.
The dollar traded at 108.10 yen on Wednesday, close to a seven-week high of 108.37 yen.
Traders remained cautious ahead of the US Federal Reserve meeting later today. The Fed is expected to cut interest rates by 0.25 percentage point on Wednesday.
In the commodity markets, oil prices edged lower as Saudi Arabia said the kingdom had fully restored its oil supply following attacks on its crude facilities.
International Brent crude futures fell 0.64 percent to $64.14 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude lost 0.78 percent to $58.88 per barrel.
Foreign investors continued with their equity selling spree in the Indian market. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 808.29 crore on Tuesday, exchange data showed.
In debt markets, the yields on the 10-year government bonds declined 0.95 percent at 6.67 percent from the previous close of 6.73 percent. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
