The rupee settled at 72.51 against 71.8450 at the previous close. The local unit moved in 72.30-72.70 per dollar band intra-day.
The Indian rupee fell for the first time in three sessions against the dollar, weighed down by importers’ dollar bids amid muted reaction to the federal government’s recently announced measures to boost inflows and stem the currency’s depreciation. Government’s weekend announcements allowed investors to invest comfortably in dollars. Till such time as FX volatility is there, such enticement doesn’t help. Hence the measures failed to calm market. The latest announcement regarding import duty shows the government is trying to take steps to control trade deficit.
Global Currency
The dollar was little changed against its major rivals on Monday, amid renewed fears over an escalating trade war between the world's two largest economies. With little data on the economic calendar, market focus will largely be attuned to the next potential steps in the tit-for-tat trade dispute between the U.S. and China.
The euro and the pound enjoyed positive starts to the week on encouraging developments on terms for Britain's exit from the European Union, paring some safe-haven demand for the dollar. The euro ticked up 0.1% to 1.1633 against the dollar. The pound was also slightly higher at 1.3085.
The Turkish central bank's decision on Thursday to hike interest rates sparked a recovery across emerging market assets while hopes of a new round of trade talks to reduce tensions between United States and China buoyed broader market sentiment further on Friday.
Global Markets
Oil prices rose on Monday as investors focused on the impact of U.S. sanctions on Iran despite assurances by Washington that Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States could together raise output fast enough to offset falling supplies.
The dollar lifted gold on Monday after two sessions of declines, but investors prepared for more weakness as simmering U.S.-China trade tensions suggested the currency would stay supported and the world's largest economy remained robust.
