Rupee rises on trade deal hopes; settles 38 paise stronger at 85.32/$

Indian Rupee today: The domestic currency closed 38 paise higher at 85.32 against the dollar on Thursday, according to Bloomberg

The Indian rupee extended its gains through the day on Thursday, amid optimism over signing trade deals with the US, along with a decline in crude oil prices.

 

The domestic currency closed 38 paise higher at 85.32 against the dollar on Thursday, according to Bloomberg. Asian currencies traded mixed during the session as caution loomed over the US reciprocal tariff deadline. 

 

The unit has depreciated by around 0.21 per cent in June and has fallen by 0.18 per cent in the first six months of the calendar year.

 

Traders await clarity on the India–US trade deal and the upcoming US non-farm payrolls (NFP) data to assess the market’s next direction, which currently appears biased towards a move lower to 85.00, analysts said.  

 

 

The US and Vietnam signed a trade deal that’ll levy a 20 per cent tariff on exports to America and a 40 per cent levy on goods deemed to be transshipped, US President Donald Trump said. Vietnam agreed to drop all tariffs on US imports, he said.

 

On Wednesday, Trump said that the US and India will soon finalise a trade deal with “much lower tariffs,” which would enable fairer competition between the two countries.  

 

The dollar index traded marginally higher after the US-Vietnam trade deal. The measure of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies was up 0.06 per cent at 96.83. The index has fallen 10.86 per cent so far this year.

 

In commodities, crude oil fell after Wednesday's uptick as Iran suspended cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog. Brent crude price was down 1.01 per cent at $68.41 per barrel, while WTI crude prices were lower by 1.05 per cent at 66.74, as of 3:35 PM IST.