Rupee slips for third day ahead of Powell speech; ends at 87.53/$

Indian Rupee today: The domestic currency closed 25 lower at 87.53 against the dollar on Friday, according to Bloomberg

The Indian rupee slid back to the 87.5 mark on Friday, sounding caution ahead of the US Federal Reserve Chair's speech at the Jackson Hole symposium. 

 

The domestic currency closed 25 lower at 87.53 against the dollar on Friday, according to Bloomberg. The unit has slipped 2.35 per cent in the current financial year and 2.19 per cent in 2025 so far. In August, it rose around 0.03 per cent against the dollar. 

The rupee continued to weaken mainly on account of the strength of the US dollar ahead of the speech of Fed Chairman's and renewed concerns over steep US Tariffs on Indian Exports, Anil Kumar Bhansali, head of treasury and executive director of Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said. "Oil importers have stepped up their dollar buying adding to the demand from the importers who were hedging for a short term after finding rupee above 87 in the last four days."

 

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Uncertainty over the August 27 deadline for an additional 25 per cent US tariff on Indian exports weighed on sentiment, analysts said. India said it will keep buying Russian oil despite the US's additional tariff set to take effect next week. However, New Delhi received rare support from China, which said it "firmly stands" with India on US President Donald Trump's tariffs. 

 

Meanwhile, Jerome Powell is scheduled to speak on Friday at 10 AM New York time in the central bank's annual Jackson Hole symposium. Investors are pricing in an over 80 per cent chance of a rate cut at the Fed's September meeting, according to reports.  

The rupee is expected to trade between 85.30/80 on Monday after seeing the impact of Jackson Hole and any new development on the Tariff front as Trump is scheduled to make some announcement today evening, Bhansali said. 

 

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) received bids worth ₹31,025 crore at the overnight variable rate repo (VRR) auction on Thursday against the notified amount of ₹50,000 crore. 

 

The dollar index, a measure of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was up 0.11 per cent at 98.72.

 

In commodities, crude oil prices headed for weekly gains amid increasing signs that peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine were stalling. Brent crude price was down 0.27 per cent at 67.49 per barrel, while WTI crude prices were lower by 0.25 per cent at 63.36 per barrel, as of 3:35 PM IST.