Mumbai: The Indian rupee on Monday strengthened marginally against the US dollar, tracking gains in the Asian currencies markets.
The local currency opened at 66.77 a dollar. At 9.15am, the home currency was trading at 66.76, up 0.07% from its Friday close of 66.81.
Asian currencies were trading stronger. Taiwan dollar was up 0.24%, Japanese yen 0.2%, Indonesian rupiah 0.17%, China renminbi 0.14%, China offshore 0.08%, Malaysian ringgit 0.05% and South Korean won 0.05%. However, Thai baht was down 0.1%.
China cut its growth target for this year to 6.5%, compared to its 2016 goal of 6.5-7% when actual growth came in at 6.7%.
On Friday, US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen said an increase in Fed funds rate will likely be appropriate at Federal Open Market Committee’s (FOMC) 14-15 March meeting if policymakers determine that employment, inflation continue to evolve in line with expectations.
Sensex index rose 0.09% or 24.82 points to 28,857.07. So far this year, it has risen 8.3%.
The 10-year bond yield was at 6.768% compared to its Friday ’s close of 6.784%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.
So far this year, the rupee has gained 1.75%, while foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have bought $1.55 billion and $423.90 million from local equity and debt markets, respectively.
The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 101.44, down 0.1% from its previous close of 101.54.
