Indian rupee ended weaker against the US dollar on increased demand of the greenback from the importers and the banks. The domestic currency remained weak since opening tracking weakness in the other Asian currency markets. Sentiments remained subdued with the private report indicating that India’s GDP growth numbers are expected to see a decline of 2% in the third and fourth quarters of the current fiscal, as effective currency in circulation has contracted significantly. Local currency was unable to get any support with report that the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) rose to a 13-month high of 5.7% in November, belying expectations of an adverse impact from demonetization and against a contraction of 1.8% in October. Also, the Inflation measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) eased to 3.41% in December versus 3.63% seen in November 2016, mainly due to softening of food prices. On the global front, dollar inched up from a five-week low against yen and steadied against the broader basket of currencies on Friday in wake of disappointment at President-elect Donald Trump's failure to elaborate on fiscal stimulus plans during a news conference a day earlier. While the markets brushed off softer-than-expected Chinese exports figures.
Finally, the rupee ended at 68.15, 7 paise stronger from its previous close of 68.08 on Thursday. The currency touched a high and low of 68.26 and 68.14 respectively. The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) reference rate for the dollar stood at 68.23 and for Euro stood at 72.47 on January 13, 2017. While the RBI’s reference rate for the Yen stood at 59.40, the reference rate for the Great Britain Pound (GBP) stood at 82.97.The reference rates are based on 12 noon rates of a few select banks in Mumbai.
