Rupee falls by 7 paise to 82.86 against U.S. dollar on firm crude oil prices

The rupee declined by 7 paise to close at 82.86 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Friday due to firm crude oil prices and steep losses in domestic stocks amid growing concerns about interest rate hikes.

A weak greenback in the global markets restricted the local unit’s losses, forex dealers said.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened marginally down at 82.81 against its previous close of 82.79. It moved in a range of 82.77 to 82.88 in the day’s trade.

The rupee finally finished at 82.86 against the U.S. dollar, showing a loss of 7 paise over its last close.

Analysts said investors are concerned that strong U.S. economic data will lead the Federal Reserve to double down on its interest rate hikes to control inflation.

Revised figures showed the U.S. economy grew a lot more in July-September than initial projections, while jobless claims were less than expected last week. The Fed has already increased the interest rates to 15-year high levels.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, dropped 0.14% to 104.49.

Brent crude oil, the pricing basis for international trading, advanced 2% to $82.61 per barrel on expectations of lower Russian crude exports from the Baltic region in December.

Domestic stocks dropped over 2% in line with losses in Asian markets. Benchmark Sensex tumbled 980.93 points to end at 59,845.29 while the broader Nifty plunged 320.55 points to 17,806.80.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers in the capital markets on Thursday as they bought shares worth ₹928.63 crore, according to exchange data.