Rupee opened lower, Dollar higher vs. major currencies

Wednesday,   12-Dec-2018   09:09 AM (IST)

The Indian rupee opened the day lower at 72.20/21 levels compared to its previous close at 71.85/86 levels on the back of sharp gains in global crude oil prices. Brent crude is up at $60.83. Indian bonds rallied today with 10-year yield falling below 7.50% level following the appointment of Shaktikanta Das as the new Reserve Bank of India governor. Das, Former DEA Secretary, took charge of the Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday, in a swift appointment expected to ease a dispute with the government as it pushes for looser credit rules ahead of a general election. Benchmark indices opened higher. At 9:45 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 35,460, up 305 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 10,638, up 88 points. India CPI and IIP data is to be released later today. Most regional currencies higher after Trump administration official reportedly says that China had agreed to cut tariffs on U.S.-built cars, auto parts. As per the technical indicators range for the USDINR pair may be 71.60-72.45 levels. Rupee has an immediate support at 72.41 levels. A breach of the same may see rupee at 72.62 followed by 72.82 levels. On the positive side rupee is likely to face resistance at 72.00 levels and if it is able to break the same then it may gain up to 71.75 levels followed by 71.55 levels.

The dollar held near a one-month high against its peers on Wednesday, supported by a rebound in U.S. yields and weakness of the pound as its battering from uncertainty about Brexit continued. The greenback was lifted as long-term U.S. Treasury yields bounced from three-month lows. The dollar index stood at 97.420 after rising overnight to 97.545, it’s highest since Nov. 13. Sterling took a big hit at the start of this week after British Prime Minister Theresa May delayed a parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal. The pound suffered further on Tuesday on media reports that May's parliamentary colleagues believed they had sufficient numbers to mount a no-confidence vote in her leadership. The British currency was little changed at $1.2495 after dropping to $1.2480 overnight, its weakest since April 2017. The currency has lost 1.8 percent this week. The euro was a shade higher at $1.1333 after shedding 0.3 percent the previous day. The dollar was a shade higher at 113.49 after touching a one-week peak of 113.52. China's Yuan was firmer in offshore trade at 6.886 to the dollar, extending gains from the previous day. The Yuan firmed on Tuesday on news that Beijing and Washington were discussing the next steps in their trade talks. U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday told Reuters he would intervene in the Justice Department's case against a top executive at China's Huawei Technologies if it would serve national security interests or help close a trade deal with China.