Rupee ended lower, Pound lower vs. Dollar

Friday,   21-Sep-2018   05:32 PM (IST)

The Indian rupee ended the session lower at 72.1950/2050 levels compared to its opening at 71.85/86 levels after touching the low of 72.47/48 levels. Rupee opened higher today and rose to day’s high of 71.76/77 levels in afternoon deals due to dollar sales by foreign banks and private lenders amid upbeat global risk sentiments. Reports of additional measures such as forex swap window for oil companies and easing global risk aversion helped rupee. However, a sudden decline in domestic shares led the rupee pare its initial gains and it sharply dropped to touch the low of 72.47/48 levels. Indian shares erased most of the losses today after panic selling in housing finance and property stocks saw key stock indexes plunge over 3 percent in intraday trade. The broader Nifty closed 0.81 percent lower at 11,143.10, while the benchmark Sensex fell 0.75 percent to 36,841.60. 11, 2017. Indian government bonds rose for the first time in six weeks, buoyed by expectations of more open market purchases of notes and the rupee’s recovery from a record low. In the forward segment 1mth, 3mth and 6mth annualized premia ended the day at are currently trading at 4.51%, 4.51% and 4.42% respectively. India's foreign exchange reserves rose to $400.49 billion as of Sept 14, compared with $399.28 billion a week earlier, the Reserve Bank of India said.

The GBP/USD is trading significantly lower amid the unsuccessful Brexit Summit in Salzburg. The EU rejected Britain's Chequers Plan and announced a potential Summit in November. In addition, the USD is recovering. The EU's Tusk and Juncker said that Britain's plan is unworkable, in a blow to UK PM May ahead of the Conservative Party Conference. The question of the Irish border remains a thorny issue in the Brexit negotiations and leaders may hold a special summit in mid-November. The US Dollar lost ground across the board as markets are calm on trade. The EUR/USD retreats from Thursday's highs as the USD is ticking higher. Markets remain calm on trade tensions with China despite further comments by President Trump against China. Euro-zone Flash PMI's missed expectations. The US announcement a 10% tariff on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods earlier this week. The move was communicated in advance, China's response was moderate, and the tariff level is relatively low.