Rupee opens 4 paise higher at 82.68 against the US dollar

livemint.com:

rupee ended 7 paise higher at 82.72 a dollar. Among other currencies, the Japanese yen strengthened 0.03% to 146.18 per dollar. The euro rose 0.05% to $1.0778, while sterling was last at $1.2596, up 0.06% on the day.

The Australian dollar added 0.17% to $0.646. The US non-farm payrolls data showed that the unemployment rate rose to 3.8% in August and wage growth was soft at 0.2% month-on-month. U.S.

employers added 187,000 jobs in August, slightly more than estimates but there are a net 110,000 of downward revisions to the past couple of months, Reuters reported. “Rupee is likely to depreciate today amid strong dollar and rise in US treasury yields. Dollar gained strength following mixed jobs report for August and better than expected ISM manufacturing index.

Additionally, hawkish comments from Cleveland Fed President Mester supported dollar. Furthermore, investors fear that a surge in crude oil prices will lead to rise in inflation and even impact current account deficit," ICICI Direct said in a report. It expects USDINR to rise further till 82.80 level as long as it stays above 82.50 levels.

Also Read: Day trading guide for today: Six stocks to buy or sell on Monday — September 4 Meanwhile, crude oil prices extended its rally to hit the highest level since November on expectations that supply cuts by OPEC leaders will tighten the market. Brent crude futures were flat at $88.53 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) gained 0.11% to $85.64 a barrel. On the domestic front, the benchmark equity indices, Sensex and Nifty, were trading higher in the pre-opening session.