Rupee vs dollar check, Jan 7: Domestic currency rises 31 paise to close at 89.87/$

The rupee rose 31 paise to close at 89.87 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday on possible intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and a fall in global crude oil prices.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 90.20 against the US dollar and traded in the range of 89.75-90.23 before settling at 89.87 (provisional), up 31 paise from its previous close.

The rupee snapped its four-day losing streak to appreciate 12 paise to settle at 90.18 against the American currency on Tuesday.

Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director at Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, told news agency Press Trust of India (PTI) that the rupee strengthened after the RBI sold dollars around the 90.23 level, indicating that the central bank does not favour one-sided currency movements. He added that it is difficult to take a clear call on the rupee’s direction at present, but a broad trading range of 89.50–90.50 could be seen for January.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07% higher at 98.65.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.99% lower at $60.10 per barrel in futures trade.

Stock market on Jan 7

The Indian stock market closed marginally lower for the third straight session on Wednesday, January 7, weighed down by auto and oil & gas stocks. Mixed cues from the Asian peers and renewed concerns about the potential US tariff hikes also kept the investors worried. 

At close, the S&P BSE SENSEX stood at the 84,961.14 level, falling 102.2 points, or 0.12%, while the NSE's NIFTY50 index slipped 37.95 points, or 0.14%, to the 26,140.75 level.

According to exchange data, on Tuesday, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹107.63 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth ₹1,749.35 crore on a net basis.