Indian Rupee Closes Stronger Against U.S Dollar

The Indian rupee closed stronger against the U.S. dollar on Friday amid a fall in crude oil prices and the dollar index.

The local currency strengthened five paise to close at Rs 82.93 against the U.S dollar. It closed at Rs 82.98 on Thursday, according to Bloomberg data.

"The rupee appears to be aligning with its fundamentals, yet it can be confirmed once it appreciates beyond Rs 82.90," Amit Pabari, managing director at CR Forex Advisors, said.

"Technically too, the dollar/rupee pair is forming lower highs and lows (bearish formation). Upon breaching this, a further fall towards Rs 82.50–82.20 is anticipated, with an upper side caped at Rs 83.20–83.30," he said.

"The US ISM PMI for January registered the strongest improvement since September 2022. 10-year US Treasury yields and the dollar index have cooled off. BoE held its rates unchanged as expected. Highlights will be the U.S. NFP data; the forecast is of 18,00,000," said Kunal Sodhani, vice president of Shinhan Bank.

"For the dollar/rupee, Rs 82.77 will act as a support and Rs 83.05 as a resistance," he said.