File.
| Photo Credit: C. Venkatachalapathy

The rupee depreciated 6 paise to 83.45 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on April 5, as market participants remained cautious ahead of the announcement of the Reserve Bank of India’s rate-setting panel’s decision.

Forex traders said the local unit was also weighed down by a strong American currency and elevated crude oil prices. Moreover, a negative trend in domestic equities and sustained foreign fund outflows also dented investor sentiments.

According to interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 83.44 against the dollar and touched a low of 83.45 in the initial trade, registering a fall of 6 paise over its previous close.

On Thursday, the rupee recovered 14 paise to close at 83.39 against the U.S. dollar.

Traders said market participants are awaiting the RBI MPC policy decision for further cues. The Reserve Bank’s rate-setting panel on Wednesday started its three-day deliberations on the next set of monetary policy.

The decision taken at the meeting of the Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das-headed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled to be announced later in the day.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was at 104.33, higher by 0.20%.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.40% to $91.01 per barrel.

Forex traders said the rupee is likely to trade with a slight negative bias on the surge in crude oil and gold prices. Renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and selling pressure from FIIs may also weigh on the rupee.

On the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 107.27 points, or 0.14% lower at 74,120.36 points. The broader NSE Nifty was down 50.05 points, or 0.22%, to 22,464.60 points.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Thursday as they offloaded shares worth ₹1,136.47 crore, according to exchange data.

On the domestic macroeconomic front, India’s services sector witnessed one of the strongest growth rates in over 13-and-a-half years in March on the back of strong demand that spurred sales and business activity.

HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finserve, Nestle India and Mahindra & Mahindra defied the trend and were trading with gains. File.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty retreated from their record peaks and traded lower in early trade on April 5 as investors turned cautious ahead of RBI’s interest rate decision, amid muted global trends and higher crude oil prices.

The six-member rate-setting panel, which began its deliberation on Wednesday, will announce the decision on Friday.

The 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 196.49 points or 0.25% to 74,031.14. The broader NSE Nifty also declined 72.85 points or 0.32% to 22,441.80.

Among the Sensex constituents, 24 stocks were trading in red with Tech Mahindra, JSW Steel, L&T, Tata Steel, and Axis Bank being the major laggards.

Wipro, Bajaj Finance, TCS, and Tata Motors also saw heavy selling.

However, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finserve, Nestle India and Mahindra & Mahindra defied the trend and were trading with gains.

On the 50-share barometer NSE Nifty, as many as 38 shares were in the negative zone while 12 were in the green.

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said the Middle East skirmishes have pushed up Brent crude to USD 91 and if oil continues to rise that can pose macro headwinds for India.

“It is possible that the exuberant Indian investors Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) flush with money may ignore the headwinds buy the dips imparting resilience to the market,” he said, adding, “amidst market weakness, banking stocks provide opportunities to buy.” Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.35% to $90.97 a barrel.

Asian markets were trading lower with Japan’s Nikkei 225 losing 2.42% and Hang Seng of Hong Kong declining 0.69%. South Koran index Kospi was also trading 0.89% lower.

European markets ended Thursday’s session on a mixed note. Germany’s DAX and London’s FTSE 100 gained while CAC40 of France lost.

The U.S. markets closed largely lower on Thursday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹1,136.47 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

On Thursday, the BSE benchmark Sensex surged 350.81 points or 0.47% to settle at its lifetime high of 74,227.63. The NSE Nifty also hit its fresh peak of 22,514.65, gaining 80 points or 0.36%.