Rupee closes unchanged at 90.66 against US dollar

Mumbai: The rupee settled flat at 90.66 (provisional) against the US dollar in a range-bound trade on Monday, as positive momentum in domestic equities was offset by a strong US dollar in the overseas market.

According to forex traders, lower crude oil prices supported the local unit, while foreign fund outflows limited its movement.

In the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.63 against the US dollar and moved between an intraday high of 90.61 and a low of 90.72 during the session.

The domestic unit closed the session at its previous closing level of 90.66 (provisional) against the greenback.

On Friday, the rupee depreciated 5 paise to settle at 90.66 against the US dollar.

Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, said that the rupee traded largely flat as market participants remained cautious, while recovery in the secondary market after a weak opening helped stabilise the currency.

"The broader tone remains range-bound, with immediate resistance placed near 90.25 and support seen around 90.90. Unless there is a decisive break on either side, the rupee is likely to continue trading within this consolidation band," Trivedi said.

According to Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Mirae Asset ShareKhan, "Investors may now watch out for housing market and GDP data from the US this week. USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 90.30 to Rs 90.90." Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.09 per cent higher at 96.91.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.47 per cent lower at $67.43 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex climbed 650.39 points or 0.79 per cent to settle at 83,277.15, while the Nifty jumped 211.65 points or 0.83 per cent to 25,682.75.

On Friday, foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 7,395.41 crore, according to exchange data.