Rupee Closes Flat Against US Dollar

The Indian rupee closed flat against the greenback after opening stronger on Friday amid a weak US Dollar Index.

The currency ended flat at 83.96 after opening at 83.94 against the US dollar, according to Bloomberg. It had closed at 83.96 on Thursday.

The DXY was at 0.01% down at 103.20 as of 3:56 p.m. and Brent crude was 0.06% at $79.21 per barrel. Brent oil prices were up on rising west Asia tensions and better-than-expected jobless claims data giving a better outlook on the US economy.

The weekly jobless claims in the US were recorded at 2.33 lakh for the week ended Aug. 3 versus the estimate of 2.4 lakh, according to Bloomberg.

Rupee was protected by the Reserve Bank of India at 83.96 for this week, according to Anil Bhansali, executive director of Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

The markets now await US CPI data, India CPI, WPI and IIP data and India's trade data, all to be released next week, Bhansali said.