The rupee settled at 73.5950 against 73.46 at the previous close. The local unit moved in 73.37-73.6650 per dollar band intra-day.
The Indian rupee closed lower against the dollar, tracking weakness in local shares and on caution ahead of the release of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting later today. Rupee turned negative after opening on a positive note due to an uptick in crude oil prices and dollar demand from the importers, a sell-off in the local shares further led to plunge in the currency. Chinese yuan and Indian rupee were the only currency to underperform in the region against the dollar.
Global Currency
The dollar edged higher on Wednesday as a rally on Wall Street boosted risk appetite, although gains were capped before the release of Fed minutes later in the day. The dollar has been strongly correlated to risk appetite for much of this year, but in the last few days we have seen this correlation loosening a bit, suggesting markets need more strong economic data to push the dollar higher.
Sterling gained ground on Tuesday after strong wage growth data, but uncertainty over whether Brexit negotiations will lead to a deal saw it pare back gains. Markets will be looking for clues on the future path of interest rates from the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s September meeting later in the day.
Global Markets
Oil prices steadied after three days of gains on Wednesday after industry data showed a surprise decline in U.S. crude inventories and tension over the disappearance of a prominent Saudi journalist stoked supply worries.
Gold prices edged lower on Wednesday as equities and the dollar gained amid waning risk-averse sentiment, with the market awaiting minutes from the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest policy meeting for fresh clues on the pace of interest rate hikes.
