By Jaspreet Kalra
MUMBAI, Mar 16 (Reuters) – The Indian rupee was a whisker away from its all-time low on Monday as worries over disruptions to energy supplies due to the Iran war kept investors on edge, while likely dollar sales by the Reserve Bank of India helped shield the currency.
The rupee was at 92.4650 per dollar as of 10:45 a.m. IST, in touching distance of its lifetime low of 92.4750 hit last week.
The currency was nearly flat on Monday, with three traders pointing to dollar sales by state-run banks, most likely on behalf of the RBI.
Frequent interventions by the central bank since the Iran war began have helped limit rupee losses despite the sharp jump in oil prices and sustained foreign selling of local stocks.
Overseas investors have net pulled out over $5.5 billion from Indian stocks in March so far. India’s benchmark Nifty 50 was down 0.4% on Monday.
While the RBI is likely to continue selling dollars to support the rupee, pressure from portfolio outflows and dollar demand from corporates is likely to persist, said Anil Bhansali, head of treasury at Finrex Treasury Advisors.
“Exporters can continue to sell at the top for the day (on USD/INR) and importers can buy the dips due to RBI selling,” he said.
Asian currencies were trading mixed, while the dollar index held near 100, benefiting from safe-haven demand as the war enters its third week.
A host of central bank policy decisions are lined up this week, with focus on how policymakers address the evolving profile of risks emanating from the Middle East conflict.
The U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision is due on Wednesday, with the central bank widely expected to keep policy rates unchanged.
(Reporting by Jaspreet Kalra; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Harikrishnan Nair)
