Rupee traded in a narrow band and slipped 4 paise to 85.19 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday, as gains from upbeat domestic equities were offset by dollar short-covering among investors.
Forex analysts noted ongoing concerns about global economic headwinds stemming from tariffs and US monetary policy, which could dampen overall demand.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 85.11 and later declined to 85.19 against the US dollar, marking a 4 paise drop from its previous close. On Monday, the rupee had gained 23 paise to end at 85.15.
“Concerns of a potential recession driven by the tariff war persist. The US president again repeated his criticism of FED chair Powell and said that the US economy will slow unless interest rates are lowered immediately. His comments fuelled worries about the FED’s independence in setting monetary policy and about the outlook for US assets,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
Bhansali added that the rupee opened marginally weaker on Tuesday after reaching a high of 85.03 on Monday—a near one-month peak—supported by strong inflows into both debt and equity markets.
Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six major currencies, was down 0.19 per cent at 98.09. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, climbed 0.53 per cent to USD 66.61 per barrel in futures trading.
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Stock market summary
Indian equities opened on a positive note in Tuesday’s trade (April 22, 2025), defying the largely sideways movement across Asian markets. At the opening bell, the Sensex surged 319.89 points to 79,728, while the Nifty50 jumped to 24,185.4. However, after posting record gains in the previous session, the broader markets took a breather, with both the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices slipping into the red.
On the investment front, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased Indian equities worth Rs 1,970.17 crore on a net basis on Monday, according to exchange data.
(With inputs from PTI)
