Rupee rises 6 paise to settle at 85.67 against US dollar

Mumbai: The rupee appreciated by 6 paise to close at 85.67 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday following optimism over a possible trade deal with the US and a delay in the imposition of reciprocal tariffs.

A firm US dollar in overseas markets and crude oil staying near USD 70 per barrel capped the gains in the local currency, forex dealers said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 85.84 against the US dollar, and traded in a range of 85.93 and 85.65 during the day. The local unit finally closed at 85.65 (provisional), up 6 paise from the previous close.

On Tuesday, the rupee rose by 21 paise to 85.73 against the US dollar.

"The rupee opened weak near 85.90 against the dollar but recovered slightly after initial losses. Ongoing trade deal negotiations and tariff delay extensions provided some relief, helping the rupee stabilise and limit further downside near the 86.00 mark. The rupee is expected to trade within a range of 85.30 to 86.20," Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, said.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.33 per cent to USD 70.38 per barrel in futures trade.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, climbed 0.03 per cent to 97.02.

Meanwhile, at the domestic equity market, the Sensex dropped 176.43 points to settle at 83,536.08, while the Nifty lost 46.40 points to close at 25,476.10.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 26.12 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, according to exchange data.