- Indian Rupee (INR) falls for a 4th day
- Importers are likely hedging
- US Dollar (USD) falls versus major peers after NFP inspired gains
- Fed speakers are due later
The US Dollar Indian Rupee (USD/INR) exchange rate is rising for a fourth straight day. The pair rose 0.15% in the previous session, settling on Monday at 81.98. At 10:00 UTC, USD/INR trades +0.15% at 81.06 and trades in a range of 81.93 to 82.12.
The Rupee is under pressure after solid gains last week. The Indian currency is likely slipping owing to persistent USD demand from oil and other importers looking to hedge near-maturity liabilities. According to a trader at a mid-sized Indian bank, importers often hedge near-term liabilities when USD/INR drops to 82.00.
Indian inflation data is due tomorrow and could be key, along with US inflation tomorrow, to deciding the pair’s next move.
The US Dollar is rising against the Rupee but falling against its major peers. The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback versus a basket of major currencies, trades -0.3% at the time of writing at 102.16 after strong gains yesterday.
The US dollar is falling as trading conditions normalise following the long Easter holiday, and the greenback is struggling to gain strength.
The US dollar had pushed higher yesterday in quiet trade as investors continued to digest the stronger-than-expected U S jobs report. The report on Friday showed that US economy added 236,000 jobs in March this was a slowdown from the previous month’s 311000 and was slightly above forecasts of 230,000.
The unemployment rate unexpectedly ticked lower to 3.5%, and average earnings were at a two-year low of 4.2% growth.
The data fuelled expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates in the may meeting by 25 basis points. The re-pricing of Fed bets boosted the USD.
There is no high-impacting US economic data due to be released. Federal Reserve speakers will be in focus.
