Indian rupee pared most of its early gains but ended marginally higher against the American currency on Monday on continued dollar selling by banks and exporters. Sentiments remained optimistic with Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya’s statement that resolution of bad loans in the banking system is on right track and will open the door to rapid credit expansion and growth. Besides, good going in the domestic equity market too supported the rupee. However, gains were muted as market participants remained cautious ahead of the key consumer price inflation (CPI) data, which will be released later in the day. On the global front, dollar edged higher against yen on Monday, pulling away from last week’s near 4-month low, with rising tensions between the United States and North Korea seen as the key to the near-term outlook.
Finally, the rupee ended at 64.12, 2 paise stronger from its previous close of 64.14 on Friday. The currency touched a high and low of 64.14 and 63.93 respectively. The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) reference rate for the dollar stood at 64.02 and for Euro stood at 75.70 on August 14, 2017. While the RBI’s reference rate for the Yen stood at 58.43, the reference rate for the Great Britain Pound (GBP) stood at 83.27. The reference rates are based on 12 noon rates of a few select banks in Mumbai.
