The Indian rupee traded little changed against the US dollar, tracking gains in local equity markets. FIIs sold shares worth a net of Rs 639.87 crore on Thursday, while DIIs sold shares worth a net of Rs 340.30 crore, provisional data showed. In global markets, stocks were mixed, with US futures drifting, European shares higher and most Asian equities slipping as markets remained on edge after a tumultuous week dominated by worries over protectionism.
The BSE Sensex closed higher by 391 points, or 1.05%, to 37,556.16, while the Nifty 50 rose 116.10 points, or 1.03%, to close at 11,360.80. In intraday trade, the Sensex surged 417.11 points to 37582.27 and the Nifty 50 advanced 123.30 points to 11,368.
For the week, the Sensex gained 0.6% and Nifty 50 rose 0.73%. The BSE MidCap and SmallCap added 0.93% and 1.16%, respectively. All the sectoral indices on the BSE ended with gains led by bankex, finance, consumer durables and metal. Axis Bank, Vedanta, Yes Bank, ICICI Bank and Indiabulls Housing Finance were among the top gainers, whereas Tech Mahindra, Tata Motors, Hero MotoCorp and Asian Paints were among the major losers.
Meanwhile the rupee yesterday closed higher against the US dollar after local equity markets surged over 1%. The rupee ended at 68.62 a dollar, up 0.14% from its previous close of 68.71. The currency opened at 68.68 a dollar.
Traders are cautious ahead of US payroll data. US non-farm payrolls probably increased 193,000 in July compared with a gain of 213,000 in June, according to a Bloomberg survey.
The 10-year bond yield stood at 7.763%, from its Thursday’s close of 7.721%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
So far this year, the rupee has weakened 7%, while foreign investors have sold $413.60mn and $6bn in equity and debt markets, respectively.
Asian currencies were trading lower. China renminbi was down 0.37%, Indonesian rupiah 0.16%, South Korean won 0.15%, Thai Baht 0.15%, Malaysian ringgit 0.15%, China offshore 0.09%, Taiwan dollar, Philippines peso and Japanese yen were down 0.05% each.
The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 95.135, down 0.05% from its previous close of 95.17.