Rupee rose 1 paisa to settle at 85.53 (provisional) against the greenback on Friday (May 16, 2025) on the back of strong FII inflows and a marginal decline in the dollar index.
Rupee’s gain was curtailed due to higher Brent crude prices, negative domestic equity markets, and the government data that showed the country’ trade deficit widening in April, according to forex traders.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the local unit opened strong at 85.28 and traded in the range of 85.28 to 85.70. It eventually settled at 85.53 (provisional), up 1 paisa from its previous close.
On Thursday, the rupee depreciated 22 paise to close at 85.54 against the greenback.
“Though the Asian currencies were all up, and so were the European currencies, the rupee could not make much headway towards 85.00 level and was getting sold near 85.30 and staying in a range broadly between 85-86 and narrowly between 85.25 and 85.75, which is also the range expected on Monday,” Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said.
In the domestic equity market, Sensex declined 200.15 points to settle at 82,330.59, while Nifty fell 42.30 points to 25,019.80.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.12% at 100.75.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.14% to 64.62 per barrel in futures trade.
The latest government data released on Thursday showed India’s trade deficit widened to a five-month high of USD 26.42 billion as imports rose 19.12% year-on-year to USD 64.91 billion in April due to a rise in shipments of crude oil and fertiliser.
However, India’s exports also rose 9.03% to USD 38.49 billion — the highest in six months — driven by healthy growth in sectors such as electronics and engineering goods.
“The trade data indicated an increase in exports by about 9 per cent while imports increased 19.13%, taking the trade deficit higher to USD 26.42 billion… The service exports saved the day for India as seen in the last few months/years,” Bhansali added.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹5,392.94 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to exchange data.
Published – May 16, 2025 05:17 pm IST