The Indian rupee fell against the dollar Thursday after Wednesday’s advance, as forex analysts cited by Press Trust of India (PTI) linked the move to rising oil prices and a weaker domestic stock market.
PTI reported that the rupee finished at ₹94.81 per dollar after opening at ₹94.47 and slipping to ₹94.94 during the session. Its report compared the close with ₹94.38 on Wednesday and described a 43-paise decline. Sharekhan’s post-market update put Thursday’s close at ₹94.82 and Wednesday’s at ₹94.46. The differing rates and previous-day comparisons leave the exact close and daily move unsettled.
Brent crude futures reached $112.33 a barrel, up 3.23% in Thursday trading, PTI reported. In an earlier snapshot at 11:45 p.m. ET Wednesday (03:45 UTC Thursday), Reuters put Brent at $110.60 a barrel, up 1.6%. Reuters reported that India is a major crude importer, making higher oil prices a risk to its import bill, inflation and corporate profits.
Indian equities also ended lower, PTI reported. The Sensex lost 460.30 points, or 0.62%, to 73,249.39, while the Nifty fell 123.70 points, or 0.54%, to 22,687.65.
Forex analysts quoted by PTI cited rising crude, weaker domestic shares and attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure as pressures on the rupee. A softer U.S. dollar and lower U.S. Treasury yields helped cushion the decline, PTI said. Sunny Aggrawal, head of fundamental research at SBI Securities, also linked the rise in Brent to the attacks.
FXStreet reported that preliminary purchasing managers’ index data for India and the United States were due Friday, Oct. 23.
