Indian rupee strengthened against the US dollar on Monday, tracking strength in Asian peers with hopes of Covid-19 vaccine rollout kept sentiments positive. India's drugs regulator has formally approved Oxford Covid-19 vaccine Covishield, manufactured by the Serum Institute, and indigenously developed Covaxin of Bharat Biotech for restricted emergency use in the country. India plans to inoculate some 300 million people on a priority list this year. Further, weakness of the American currency overseas and sustained foreign fund inflows also supported the rupee. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought shares worth Rs 506.21 crore on a net basis on Friday, exchange data showed.
The partially convertible currency is currently trading at 73.01, stronger by 10 paise from its previous close of 73.11 on Friday. The currency touched a high and low of 73.0350 and 72.9050 respectively. The reference rate for the dollar stood at 73.03, and for Euro stood 89.22 on January 1, 2021. While the reference rate for the Yen stood at 70.7, the reference rate for the Great Britain Pound (GBP) stood at 99.80.
