Indian rupee appreciated for the second consecutive session against dollar on Wednesday on fresh selling of American currency by banks and exporters, despite sustained fall in equities. Besides, dollar's weakness overseas also added to the positive milieu of Indian currency. Further, investors got some relief with Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das statement that the 7.6 percent GDP growth is 'significant' amid the global turmoil and there is no need to be 'skeptical', underscoring the importance of reforms. Meanwhile, the finance ministry said that tax collections stood at Rs 10.66 lakh crore in the first ten months of the current financial year, which was 73.5% of the Budget target of Rs 14.49 lakh crore. On the global front, dollar languished close to a 3-1/2-month low against a basket of major currencies on Wednesday, as traders waited for US interest rate guidance from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.
Finally, the rupee ended at 67.85, 5 paise stronger from its previous close of 67.90 on Tuesday. The currency touched a high and low of 67.98 and 67.81 respectively. The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) reference rate for the dollar stood at 67.87 and for Euro stood at 76.64 on February 10, 2016. While the RBI’s reference rate for the Yen stood at 59.21, the reference rate for the Great Britain Pound (GBP) stood at 98.2943. The reference rates are based on 12 noon rates of a few select banks in Mumbai.
