Rupee opened higher, Euro up vs. Dollar

Thursday,   16-May-2019   09:08 AM (IST)

The Indian rupee opened the day higher at 70.27/28 levels compared to its previous close at 70.3350/3450 levels. India April trade deficit widens more than expected. India April trade gap at $15.3 billion, up from $10.9 billion in prior month. Most Asian currencies higher after weak US retail sales data pushed 10-year Treasury yield to lowest since early-March. Indian government bonds drop in early trading as crude oil prices rise for third day adding to inflation concerns. Equity markets opened flat with a positive bias lifted by gains in Infosys and Reliance Industries. At 9:35 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 37,148, up 33 point, while the broader Nifty50 was at 11,167, up 10 point. As per the technical indicators range for the USDINR pair may be 69.90-70.60 levels. Rupee has an immediate support at 70.41 levels. A breach of the same may see rupee at 70.55 followed by 70.70 levels. On the positive side rupee is likely to face resistance at 70.17 levels and if it is able to break the same then it may gain up to 70.02 levels followed by 69.85 levels.

The euro was buoyant on Thursday as trade concerns eased on expectations that U.S. President Donald Trump will delay implementing tariffs on imported cars. Trump administration officials told Reuters on Wednesday that the president is expected to put off a decision on imposing tariffs on imported cars and parts by up to six months, for now preventing a further increase in transatlantic trade tensions. The euro was 0.05% higher at $1.1207, having bounced overnight from a one-week low of $1.1178. The single currency was initially hit as Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini criticized European Union rules for the second day. The dollar traded little changed at 109.500 yen. The greenback had retreated to a low of 109.150 against the safe-haven yen on Wednesday as U.S. yields slid on weak U.S. April retail sales and industrial output data. China had also reported surprisingly weaker growth in retail sales and industrial output for April, denting riskier assets. But the U.S. currency retraced its losses against the yen as trade tensions softened. The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies was nearly flat at 97.542 after posting modest gains the previous day. The Australian dollar nudged down 0.1% to $0.6922, staying within touching distance of a 4-1/2-month low of $0.6915 touched the previous day on weak domestic wages data and soft Chinese economic indicators. Immediate focus for the Aussie was on the Australian employment data due at 0130 GMT.