Mumbai: Rupee on Thursday opened lower at 62.14 vs US dollar against Wednesday's close of 61.93.
The rupee on Wednesday had depreciated by 14 paise to close at 61.93 against the dollar, partially erasing early losses after government data showed India's trade deficit narrowed to a 30-month low. The rupee came under pressure on demand from importers as the dollar strengthened overseas.
The government said exports grew 11.15 per cent in September and imports declined 18.1 per cent amid a sharp fall in inward shipments of gold and silver, taking the trade deficit to the lowest level in 30 months. The trade data also helped local stocks to recover from initial losses.
The dollar index was up by 0.5 per cent against a basket of six major global currencies. The rupee has recovered from an all-time low of 68.85 against the dollar in late August after liquidity-tightening steps by the government to curb exchange rate volatility and restrictions on gold imports to reduce dollar outflows.
"India's trade deficit narrowed to a two-and-a-half-year low in September, raising hopes for a significant reduction in the country's gaping current account deficit, which helped the rupee to recover some of its early losses," said Pramit Brahmbhatt, CEO of Alpari Financial Services (India). "The trading range for the spot USD-INR pair is expected to be within 61.00 to 62.50."
Forward dollar premiums declined further on sustained receipts by exporters. The benchmark six-month forward dollar premium payable in March eased to 233-1/2-235-1/2 paise from yesterday's close of 237-242 paise and far-forward contracts maturing in September dipped to 438-1/2-441-1/2 paise from 443-1/2-448-1/2 paise.
The RBI fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 61.9170 and for the euro at 83.9247. The rupee recovered to 98.80 against the pound from the overnight close of 99.43 and to 83.70 per euro from 83.90. It fell slightly against the Japanese yen to 63.67 per 100 yen from 63.65.
(With additional inputs from PTI)
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