Rupee rises 15 paise to 73.09 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee gained 15 paise to 73.09 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday as the Reserve Bank of India decided to keep benchmark interest rate unchanged.

At the interbank forex market, the rupee opened at 73.21 against the American currency, gained some ground to touch 73.09, up 15 paise from its previous close.

On Thursday, the rupee closed at 73.24 against the US dollar.

Maintaining status quo for the second time in a row, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday decided to keep benchmark interest rate unchanged at 4 per cent but retained an accommodative stance, implying more rate cuts in the future if the need arises to support the economy hit by the COVID-19 crisis.

On the prices front, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said inflation is likely to ease to projected target by the fourth quarter of this fiscal.

On the growth front, Das said gross domestic product (GDP) growth may break out of contraction and enter the positive zone by the fourth quarter of the current fiscal.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.15 per cent to 93.46.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 66.97 points higher at 40,249.64, and the broader NSE Nifty rose 24.45 points to 40,249.64.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 978.37 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.16 per cent to USD 43.27 per barrel.