Rupee pushes ahead to 1-week high at 64.44 on capital glut

The rupee on Friday hit its upward trajectory against the dollar for the third straight day, surging 18 paise more to end at a one-week high of 64.44, buoyed by stocks that soared to life highs as the Modi government completed three years in power.

A weaker greenback overseas along with abundant capital inflow and unwinding of long positions by traders and banks weighed on the dollar.

The home unit has appreciated by a whopping 45 paise in the last three days after rebounding from its recent 1-1/2 month low.

The rupee resumed on a firm note at 64.56 from Thursday's closing value of 64.62. It was largely confined to a tight range for most part of the day before ending at 64.44, a gain of 18 paise, or 0.28 per cent.

Confidence in the country's revival on the back of pro- growth reforms over the last three years bolstered the overall rupee sentiment.

Foreign funds purchased shares worth a net Rs 589.11 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.

Indian financial markets continued their relentless record-breaking streak for the second day. Highly buoyant global cues and expectations of good monsoon aided the momentum.

The Sensex surged to another record 31,000 while the broader Nifty closed at a new life high of 9,595.

In the meantime, India retained its numero uno position as the world's top most greenfield FDI investment destination for the second consecutive year, attracting $ 62.3 billion in 2016, which came as a sign of bullish sentiment.

Global crude oil prices remained under immense pressure after crashing over 5 per cent overnight on profit-taking even as the OPEC meeting outcome was in line with market expectations.

The RBI, meanwhile, fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 64.59 and for the euro at 72.33.

Worldwide, the greenback traded weak against major units following a steady string of disappointing US news flows and the cooling of Fed rate hike expectations.

The pound took a big hit after a poll showed PM Theresa May's Conservatives' lead shrinking two weeks before an election.

The dollar index, which tracks the US currency against a basket of six major rivals, was trading higher by 0.15 per cent at 97.29.

In cross-currency trades, the rupee rose further against the pound sterling to end at 82.82 from 83.70 and also recovered against the euro to finish at 72.21 as compared to 72.45 yesterday.

The local currency, however, fell back against the Japanese yen to end at 58.05 per 100 yens from the 57.82 earlier.

In forward market today, premium for dollar displayed a steady to easy trend owing to lack of market-moving factors.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in October was little changed at 127-128 paise from 126-128 paise while the far forward April 2018 contract edged up to 274-275 paise from 272-274 paise on Thursday.