Rupee opened lower, Sterling lower vs. Dollar

Thursday,   19-Nov-2020   10:45 AM (IST)

The Indian rupee opened the day tad lower at 74.29/30 levels compared to its previous close at 74.1950/2050 levels as the dollar rebounded amid tepid risk appetite. India's government bond yields trading largely unchanged in thin volume early session trade as traders await special open market bond purchase by RBI; benchmark note now at Rs 99.22, yielding 5.88%, against Rs 99.19 and 5.88% yield yesterday. India’s benchmark equity indices are trading flattish to lower tracking similar moves in most Asian shares after U.S. equites pulled further away from their record highs amid more curbs to contain the corona virus pandemic. At 10:30 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 44,184, up 4 point, while the broader Nifty50 was at 12,950 up 12 points. As per the technical indicators range for the USDINR pair may be 73.90-74.55 levels. Rupee has an immediate support at 74.42 levels. A breach of the same may see rupee at 74.55 followed by 74.76 levels. On the positive side rupee is likely to face resistance at 74.14 levels and if it is able to break the same then it may gain up to 74.02 levels followed by 73.82 levels.

Sterling is trading lower against the dollar as The Times triggered chatters over no-deal Brexit. Even as the key bloc members like France, Belgium and the Netherlands are frustrated over the Brexit discussions, as The Times puts it, the UK policymakers have been cautiously optimistic in their latest comments. UK’s Business Secretary Alok Sharma joined hands with EU Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis to convey nearness to the much-awaited deal. However, chatters that Poland, Hungary and France aren’t that satisfied keeps the risk elevated. Meanwhile, the second wave of the corona virus contagion is tightening its grip the world over, with the situation across the US worsening. According to the latest reports, Minnesota State Governor Walz tightened restrictions announced a four-week plan, which includes the closure of the fitness centres and stopping restaurants and bars in-person dining. The New York city Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday he would shut schools because of rising infections. It’s worth noting that America has registered more than 100,000 every day for two weeks. Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a regular press briefing, the government will not immediately declare a health emergency following a record rise in corona virus cases, adding that they will continue to monitor the infection rates. This comes after Tokyo is said to record over 500 new infections on Thursday, as the capital raised the corona virus alert to its highest level. As of Wednesday, Japan hit a record daily high of 2,201 cases. On the other side, Poland announced that it is considering a nationwide lockdown while most of the major European economies, including France, Italy, Spain and the UK, are already under lockdowns. The drag from new U.S. restrictions was only amplified by the total lack of progress on a fiscal stimulus bill, fuelling speculation the Federal Reserve would have to expand its asset-buying campaign at a December policy meeting. Two top Fed officials on Wednesday held out the option of doing more. The US remains in a "severe recession" and growth vulnerable to swings in infection rates, New York Federal Reserve President John Williams said on Wednesday, who reiterated the bank would use all its tools to help the economy.