The rupee rose 1 paisa to settle at 85.53 (provisional) against the greenback on Friday on the back of strong FII inflows and a marginal decline in the dollar index.

The rupee’s gain was curtailed due to higher Brent crude prices, negative domestic equity markets, and government data that showed the country’ trade deficit widening in April, according to forex traders.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the local unit opened strong at 85.28 and traded in the range of 85.28 to 85.70. It eventually settled at 85.53 (provisional), up 1 paisa from its previous close.

On Thursday, the rupee depreciated 22 paise to close at 85.54 against the greenback.

“Though the Asian currencies were all up, and so were the European currencies, the rupee could not make much headway towards the 85.00 level and was sold near 85.30, and stayed in a range between 85-86 and narrowly between 85.25 and 85.75, which is also the range expected on Monday,” Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said.

In the domestic equity market, Sensex declined 200.15 points to settle at 82,330.59, while Nifty fell 42.30 points to 25,019.80.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.12 per cent at 100.75.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.14 per cent to 64.62 per barrel in futures trade.

The latest government data released on Thursday showed India’s trade deficit widened to a five-month high of $26.42 billion as imports rose 19.12 per cent year-on-year to $64.91 billion in April due to a rise in shipments of crude oil and fertiliser.

However, India’s exports also rose 9.03 per cent to $38.49 billion — the highest in six months — driven by healthy growth in sectors such as electronics and engineering goods.

“The trade data indicated an increase in exports by about 9 per cent, while imports increased 19.13 per cent, taking the trade deficit higher to $26.42 billion. The service exports saved the day for India as seen in the last few months/ years,” Bhansali added.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹5,392.94 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to exchange data.

Published on May 16, 2025