Indian rupee trades at 20 versus UAE dirham

The Indian rupee fell 17 paise to 73.51 against the US dollar (20.0 versus the UAE dirham) at the opening of the trade on Wednesday (May 12), weighed down by weaker domestic equity markets and a stronger US dollar.

The rupee closed at 73.34 versus the greenback (19.98 against dirham) on Tuesday.

Reliance Securities said in a research note that most of the Asian currencies were trading weaker against the dollar and could weigh on sentiments.

The Bombay Stock Exchange’s (BSE) 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 382.61 points or 0.78 per cent lower at 48,779.20 on Wednesday.

Similarly, the broader 50-share NSE Nifty slipped 106.70 points or 0.72 per cent to 14,744.05.

Investors are awaiting cues from the US consumer price index (CPI) and inflation in India. Besides, concerns over rising Covid-19 cases also weighed on sentiment.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading higher by 0.27 per cent at 90.38 ahead of US CPI data to be released later in the day.

"A higher inflation number might add pressure on the US Federal Reserve to bring forward rate rises, but currency markets have been soothed by repeated promises of patience from Fed speakers," the Reliance Securities' note said.

According to the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare's (MoH&FW) data released on Wednesday, India recorded 4,205 Covid-19 deaths in a day, taking the total toll due to Covid-19 to 254,197, while 348,421 new infections were reported.

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