Forex traders said the domestic unit continued to reel under pressure due to unabated withdrawal of foreign capital, a strengthening dollar, and rising crude oil prices amid a volatile geopolitical situation.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the local unit opened at 93.13, then gained further ground to touch 92.85 against the greenback, up 33 paise from its previous close.
On Thursday, the rupee logged one of its steepest single-day gains in many years and settled 152 paise higher at 93.18 against the US dollar after the Reserve Bank stepped in with a slew of measures to restrict banks from onshore forward markets.
Equity and forex markets remained closed on Friday due to Good Friday.
Global tensions are keeping the rupee under pressure. US President Donald Trump has escalated tensions with Iran, giving a deadline until Tuesday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and warning that failure to comply could lead to attacks on its power infrastructure.
“On one side, RBI’s actions are clearly working. As banks continue to unwind dollar positions ahead of the April 10 deadline, the rupee may strengthen further toward the 91.50-92.00 range,” CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari said. But on the other side, global risks cannot be ignored, Pabari said, adding that if geopolitical tensions continue and oil prices remain elevated, India’s macro balances, trade deficit, current account deficit, and fiscal position could come under pressure again.
“In that scenario, the rupee may find it difficult to sustain gains and could move back toward the 94.00 levels after stabilizing at lower levels. But the bigger picture remains clear volatility is here to stay,” he said.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.14 per cent higher at 100.17.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading at USD 109.75 per barrel, up 0.66 per cent, in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex declined 270.13 points to 73,049.42 in early trade, while the Nifty dropped 93.60 points to 22,619.50.
Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 9,931.13 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to exchange data.
