Re logs 1st fall in 4 days Slips 17 paise to 72.62/USD

Mumbai Halting its three-day winning run, the rupee on Monday tumbled by 17 paise to close at 72.62 against the American currency as stronger US dollar against key rivals and surging crude oil prices weighed on sentiment. At the interbank foreign exchange (forex) market, the domestic currency opened at 72.38 a dollar and hit an intra-day high of 72.34 and a low of 72.65 during the day. Paring all its intra-day gains, the rupee closed at 72.62, registering a decline of 17 paise over its previous close of 72.45 a dollar. On a monthly basis, the domestic unit has gained 149 paise or 2.01 per cent over the US dollar in May. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.04 per cent to 90.07. According to Saif Mukadam, research analyst at Sharekhan, "the rupee depreciated amid strong dollar and surge in crude oil prices. Further, traders remained cautious ahead of key macro-economic data." Sriram Iyer, senior research analyst at Reliance Securities, adds: "The Indian rupee erased the intraday gains and ended near the day's low against the dollar, probably on the back of RBI's presence and month-end demand from importers." Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.06 per cent to $69.45 per barrel. Additionally, market participants remained vigilant ahead of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) monetary policy meeting. "However, sharp fall was prevented on positive domestic markets and as nations daily COVID-19 cases declined. Rupee may trade in the range of 72.25 to 73.30 in next couple of sessions," Mukadam added.

Initially, the local unit strengthened to 72.34 against the US dollar tracking positive domestic equities improved sentiments amid a steady decline in COVID-19 cases. On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 514.56 points or 1 per cent higher at 51,937.44, while the broader NSE Nifty gained 147.15 points or 0.95 per cent to close at 15,582.80.