Rupee surges 13 paise to 74.25 against US dollar in early trade

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The Indian rupee gained 13 paise and touched 74.25 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday, supported by a firm trend in domestic equities and weak American currency. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 74.32 against the dollar, then inched higher to 74.25, registering a gain of 13 paise over its previous close.

On Wednesday, the rupee had settled at 74.38 against the US dollar. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.18 per cent down at 92.16. The Indian rupee started on a stronger note this Thursday morning against the greenback as the US central bank said that it was still a ways away from considering raising interest rates, Reliance Securities said in a research note.

The US Federal Reserve said the economic recovery is on track despite a rise in Covid-19 infections but did not set a timeline for tapering Fed asset purchase. Fed policymakers, in a unanimous statement, also said they were moving ahead with discussions about when to reduce the central bank's USD 120 billion in monthly bond purchases, a precursor to eventually raising interest rates, the note added.

On the domestic equity market front, BSE Sensex was trading 205.38 points or 0.39 per cent higher at 52,649.09, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 64.35 points or 0.41 per cent to 15,773.75. Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 2,274.77 crore, as per exchange data. Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures advanced 0.35 per cent to USD 75 per barrel.

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